Canadian Citizenship or US Green Card?

I

immigration7

Registered Users (C)
Fellow Readers,
  I am at a cross-roads now. After 6 years on H1B in USA, I did not get the Green Card in time, so I moved to Canada as a Landed Immigrant and started living in Toronto. From Toronto, based on the strength of my working relationship with my former US employer and my fellow-team members, I was able to work out a successful remote work arrangement to continue working with them, but living and residing in Toronto full-time since 1999. I paid Canadian Income taxes on all my earned income here for 1999,2000,2001.
  Now after spending just over 2 years here, residing here in this most beatiful, wonderful, most cosmopolitan and diverse city of Toronto, my former US employer has finally managed to drag their Green Card process along to near-completion and want me to show up for the IV interview very soon. Then take the Green Card and return to USA to resume physical residence there and start working with them.
  My US team-members and my employer are both really nice people. They are all very highly educated, and very team-building, and we go back nearly 5 years.
  However, instead of being excited and all fired up, I have become confused now. Should I really go back to USA on US Green Card? If I do, I loose my eligibility to become a Canadian Citizen which is not even 10 months away now.
* Is it prudent to loose the chance to become a Canadian Citizen?
* Is it prudent to refuse to go back to USA now, and thereby automatically loose the US Green Card?
* What is better in the long run?
   - Canadian Citizen or US Green Card with Indian Citizenship?

I already know that legally speaking, one cannot keep both Canadian Immigrant Status and US Green Card at the same time, it is only one or the other, not both. So I am not even thinking of juggling something like that. If I go to US now on US Green Card, I cease to exist as a Canadian Resident/Landed Immigrant, hence the question of applying for Canadian Citzenship 10 months from now does not arise anymore. If I stay back in Toronto for another 10 months waiting to become eligible for applying for Canadian Citizenship, then I loose the chance I have now to get the US Green Card, and also loose the job I have had for the last 2 years.

  Any thoughts on which would be a better choice in the long run? Thanks in adance for your time and input, folks. I wish everyone the best in life.
 
Difficult Situation

You seem to be in a fix.how ever i think there is a way out of this.
You need not declare the US Green Card to canada and continue to pay nominal amount of taxes in canda and at the end of 10 months wait for
citizenship in canada.
All you have to do is to prove that your move to the US is temporory in nature due to work and you intend to return to canada soon.
 
Thanks, but the problems seem to be.......

Hello GCCrusader,
  I sincerely thank you for your time and recommendation; but I think my problems come due to the following issues:
* My US sponsoring employer wants me to pack up and move to US upon completion of the IV interview/grant of IV and physically reside and work from within the US from then on. Remote Virtual Office arrangement will be dismantled from that point on. In other words, withing about 2 more months, I am expected to pack up and move to USA. They wont wait for me for another 10-14 months. If I dont move now, they will terminate my employment entirely.
* Does not Montreal actually stamp evidence of IV-I-551 on a page in the Passport if an IV is granted? Even if not at the Consulate itself, is it not stamped clearly at the Port of Entry when I cross the land-border some place just as I leave Canada and enter USA?
  * Once such a stamp is placed in the Passport, this is clear evidence of intent to take up US residency, and thereby abandon Canada from that point on, which
  * When applying for Canadian Citizenship 10 months later, I would certainly have to return to Canada and at the border, they will see this US I-551 stamp and automatically void my Landed Immigrant status. Even if by some miracle I escape that, then Citizenship and Immigration Canada at the time of Citizenship interview/during the application processing, will want to examine the foriegn passport before issuance of Canadian Citizenship, at which time the US I-551 will surely come up as a huge show-stopper?
 
Reason for Confusion ??

Canada has higher taxes, lower salaries and it is Colder. Out of curiosity, why do you want to obtain your Canadian citizenship when you are getting your US Green Card?? I am trying to understand your motivation and thought process - hopefully, it will help me make a better decision when I get there. Thx !!
 
Sunny Jay

This is just my opinion.

What you said about Canada is true... but there are other things about Canada that you can\'t find them in US. It\'s hard to describe...have you ever staying in Canada or are you still in Canada?
 
Tell me more !!

No, I haven\'t lived in Canada - just obtained my PR. Plan to stay for a bit longer in the United States before I move to Canada. Please try to explain other things about Canada that makes it better. People, Environment, Others.....Thanks in advance.
 
No Title

Sunny,
My brother is a Canadian Resident and he likes it a lot in Canada, he said the people are very nice, there immigration department are very kind, from what I have seen.
The country is beautiful, especially British Columbia. Health care is free, and there are lots more. I have not lived there so don\'t know a lot about Canada, but my brother seems to like it a lot.
 
Similar situation here

The US company (for whom I was working before leaving US for Canada) has laid me off as their project has ended in Canada. The nly way they could accomodate me is for me return to US and get the GC.
My final US GC approval has come thru.
But I am not sure what to do. The job market is awful here (salaries are horrible). Plus my Mom and brother are staying with me here and I am sponsoring their Canadian residence.
As you said it is illegal to keep 2 GC ( canadian and US ) at the same time.
I dont want to hurt my chances of sposoring my MOM/Brother.
Yes, I agree with sunny jay, Canada is cold and the salries are less, taxes are thru the roof.
 
Once you have Canadian Citizenship its very easy to work in the US

Once you have Canadian Citizenship you can always work in the US through a TN visa.
As long as your job title meets one of the jobs under which you can get a TN visa, and you have the required scholastic experience for that job, you can very easily get a temporary TN work visa.
It is MUCH easier to get than a H1B visa. Just go to the border with $55 US and all your forms as well as a job offer letter from an employer and you can get a TN visa which is valid for 1 year. After a year you go back to the border and get another one.
Plus once you have Canadian Citizenship you have it for good.

So if you are ever planning to live in Canada again this is something to take into consideration.
Note: The TN visa is part of the NAFTA agreement between US and Canada and is only valid between these two countries. There is no upper limit to how many TN visas are given each year.

NOTE: Speak to a competent attorney for further questions about this route.
 
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