Wedding location help?

Question

my fiance lives in canada. i live in the US. i really had my heart on gettin married in canada but i need my family and my close friends at the wedding and i dont think i could do it because of the passport law changing and most of my close family doesnt have them. but i also dont want both mine and his family driving far then having to pay for alot of hotel rooms. so i thought maybe somewhere in the US thats equal distance kinda or just close enough so one family doesnt need hotel rooms...but then idk if we can do it because idk if he needs certain papers signed so we can get married in the US. i really want to have it in canada....can anyone help me with some ideas what to do??? could i like send the US side of the guest list to the border if they dont have passports lolol...im desparate here lol

Answer 1

Congratulations!

Two weddings will be suffice.  

Two different places, only the closest friends will appear on both sides.  That's it.

Answer 2

The WHTI (Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative) is a US policy that has not come into full effect.  If you are traveling by air from the US to any other country, you are required to show a Passport.  If you are traveling by land, you DO NOT need a Passport to enter Canada or the US as long as you are an American or Canadian Citizen.  You must provide a government picture ID (like a driver's license) AND an original or true certified copy of your birth certificate.  The land phase requiring a Passport at land borders will take effect in June of 2009.  Other things can prevent someone from crossing across the border like criminality, missing Visas from non-Canadian or US citizens or carrying prohibited items.

Where you get married is less important to either the US or Canadian government, what really matters is where are you going to live.  Both countries promote their travel and tourism industries, but living in either country is a different matter.  You are best to start inquiring with Immigration as soon as possible once you decide where you will live.  In Canada, you would likely enter on a Visitor Record while you are completing your application for Permanent Resident status.  Not sure about what is involved when moving to the US for your Canada honey.  Good luck, don't leave it to the last minute!

Answer 3

Passports aren't that expensive.  They run about $80, I believe.  

You may want your friends and family by your side to celebrate your marriage, but you don't need them there.   Invite who you want, and those who can afford to come will come.

   Or get married in one place have a small reception there - then a larger reception in the other so the other side of the family can celebrate, too.

Answer 4

The first thing you need to do is apply for a fiance visa for him.  You have to prove you have sufficient income and assets to support him and guarantee a $30,000 bond.  You also have to prove you have a valid relationship: how you met, when & where you have been together, etc.  It can take about a year to get approved.  If approved, he can enter the US, and then you have 90 days to marry and apply for a spousal visa.  He will probably be allowed to remain in the US while that application is processed.  After that's approved, he can apply for authorization to work.  If approved, he can apply for an SSN, and after he gets that, then he can start job-hunting.  So be prepared to be sole support of the household for quite a while!

If you try to get married with him entering without a fiance visa, he has to return to Canada and wait there while you apply for the spousal visa.  It now takes about 2 years (can be more) for approval for him to enter the US.

So you have much more important legal problems to deal with before you pick which town is most convenient for travel schedules.  And you need several thousand dollars for his immigration applications & fees, so if you are quibbling over the costs of one night in a motel to attend a wedding, you obviously have to re-budget your wedding expenses.  

Don't set a wedding date.  You have really fouled up your wedding planning, and it ain't happening anytime soon.

Answer 5

Gosh xchole24

The first thing is to grab your map for distances and locations. What state and city is the closest to the border.

Remember, the wedding is about YOU and your husband to be. If family wants to come, they will find the way to be on your special day.

If that is so important to you, have two weddings, one here and the other in canada.

Problem solved!