U.S. Immigration Myth: It Isn’t as Hard as You Think | Leaving Canada

Well, Canadians have been immigrating to the USA in droves. Now, what are some of the risks? What are some of the pitfalls that they should be made aware of? In fact, what are the advantages? In fact, are there any advantages to living in Florida? Well, we're going to find out about that. We're joined by a mother daughter duo today, a power duo. We have Rocky Maimoni and we have her daughter Mena here. And now one is a sought after immigration attorney, the other has 30 years as a business veteran and a real estate powerhouse. We're excited to have both of you here today. Welcome to wealth on Main Street.

Yeah, it's great to have you both. This discussion is really picking up a lot of speed with a lot of Canadians that, you know, we connect with and chat with. And I had occasion to live and work in the United States and thoroughly enjoyed it. And so what are you seeing out there with Canadians who are engaging and what are some of the most, I guess, frequently addressed myths about the process that you both have to address?

So I think a lot of people, they believe that it's very difficult. And growing up myself in Bolton, Ontario, I think my mom can agree as well. We both thought that this would be a very hard process. But there are a lot of visas out there, some specifically for Canadians that are not hard to obtain, especially if you have the right team. So a lot of our clients, I think, are pleasantly surprised by how fast it can be and how easy it can be. What myths? I don't know. What myths do you think, Rocky? What myths are there out there that are not true?

Well, under the current affairs that are happening politically and cross borderly, we want to call it that. So many people are frightened and they think that, you know, I'm going to cross the border, I'm going to get detained. The Canadian media has, I know that there's one instance where a Canadian tried to enter at the Canadian U.S. border. She had overstayed in the United States, essentially making her illegal. When she tried to reapply, they she was denied at the Canadian border. So then she flew to the to Mexico and tried to enter through the Mexican border. And at that point she was detained. So I've heard all kinds of clients, you know, is it safe? I'm going to get detained. The answer is no, you're not going to get detained. Americans still love Canadians. We haven't seen any issues whatsoever. You know, if your passport is in order, your documents are in order, there's no reason why you should have any Issues at the border. There's also a bit of a. I know that the whole immigration thing with the current administration, yes, they are cracking down on illegal immigration. However, legal pathways are still there. Like the E2 visa has been some form of. The E2 visa has been around for 200 years. When he was in power the last time, nothing changed with the E2 visa. I mean, small business owners, the backbone of America and Canada, bringing in money, expertise, opening businesses, creating jobs. The doors are wide open. So there's a lot of that going on, which isn't true. So we have a lot of clients calling. And thankfully, you know, Men has put out some videos as well, addressing some of these concerns. So it's full steam ahead if you want to pursue different types of visas. Those are still in play.

Well, it's not like the Canadian media to take a little bit of information and jump to an absurd conclusion.

Anything, Anything to get clicks and views.

Yep.

Well, I'm going to tell you a story that really highlighted something to me. There was a video that I saw, and it was basically a person talking about how angry the Canadians are at the US for the proposed tariffs. And the video went on to say, you should be upset at your own government for high income taxes, loss of freedoms. You know, he went on and listed some things that as Canadians, we should maybe pay attention to. I tried to share that video with my sister who resides in Ontario, and she messaged me and said, why are you sending me videos about hairdressing? And I said, that's interesting. I didn't. So then I tried sending it to my nephew and he had the same response. The only way I could show her the true video was to FaceTime her and play it on my husband's cell phone. Somehow it was. I didn't even know they had the capability to do that. It was received and the video was switched and I wasn't able to share it. There have been a few times where we've tried to share specifically there was an air show in Fort Lauderdale and I tried to share it on the Facebook group, hey guys, you know this cool air show in Fort Lauderdale? And everyone started replying saying the the content was blocked because it was wasn't me taking a video of the air show. It was on a news outlet in Florida. And so that news outlet was blocked in Canada. So I started to realize that the censorship is in Canada is more than we first believed it to be.

I can share with you from firsthand experience that going through the visa process, having done that twice now, My first was on an executive L1 visa, which my employer at the time was able to speed up the process legally, and everything went through just fine. And then when we established business in the United States, because we operate there now, the process seemed very. I mean, it was time consuming because we had to supply a business plan and what our projected revenues and headcount would be. And when we went through the first renewal, then there was a review of that and an update provided. And so it seemed like there was no friction in the process. So when I hear people's concerns, my first question is, like, have you substantiated those concerns? Like, have you spoken to an expert who can actually address that? Or are you relying on Uncle Google or ChatGPT or some other platform to give you the information? Like, you've got to get connected with a team like the both of you, and to sit down and say, here's what my plans are. Does this qualify me? What is your method of helping me get this achieved and just get all that clarity? And you'll find that the process is not as difficult as it may be purported to be.

Yeah, it's pretty straightforward. You just got to follow the basic rules. And if you have the right immigration team on your side who can properly guide you and put your paperwork together and file in a timely manner, I mean, sometimes there's little hiccups that we can't foresee. We have to deal with that. But for the most part, I mean, with the. Our E2 visa applications, for example, we have 100% approval.

That's a pretty good rating.

Yeah. Men. And the legal team, very meticulous. They make sure everything's in proper order before they sign that. We offer a guarantee on it, too, just to let our clients know, hey, we're in this with you. So, you know, we're not here to guide you on a path that leads nowhere.

Yeah.

So. And having been through it ourselves, I would have hated to start the process, get everything in order, and it leads nowhere. So we want our clients to know we've been there. We know exactly how you feel all, every step of the way, and we're here to guide you. I kind of. It's like Big brothers watching. We're going to take good care of you and make sure nobody messes around with you. So that's why we added the other legal services, because clients were asking, can, you know, we'd rather just come to you for everything. And, you know, MENA did a great job of adding those practice areas and making sure that we can take care of the full gamut of what our clients need.

That's incredible.

That compliment.

Mom. I would like to get into a little bit of what we offer outside of immigration.

Oh, please do. Yeah, please.

So we found that a lot of our clients, just like us, they came to Florida or Texas or whatever state they wanted to immigrate to, and they didn't know how things worked. Right. So when we got here, we were like, what? What do all these things mean? And how do I protect myself? And it was kind of scary because, you know, if. If you don't have the knowledge, then you feel like, kind of vulnerable.

Right.

So one of the practice areas that we introduced was and is estate planning and asset protection. So in Canada, it's harder to get sued than it is in the United States. I'm sure you know about this, Jason. So what we offer is asset protection through entity formation, trusts, and. And then any kind of document that they're going to need to protect any of those assets after they pass away or if in the event they're incapacitated. So that kind of went along with their journey. And then we also set up a relationship with a business law attorney that helps with a lot of the business closings that they need to undergo for the E2 visa. So part of the E2 is that they have to buy a business or invest in a business, and so we even help facilitate the closing or the purchase of that business as well.

That's fantastic. And that's exactly what people need, because getting the visa is one thing. Once you're over the border again, having been through that experience and moving to the United States, I was very grateful to have a step by step, here's everything that you need to put into place, and the sooner you get it done, the better. And something as simple as going to the Social Security office and getting set up and getting all that done and then going and getting a driver's license and going. And like, there's so many different things that. And you're right. I mean, America is not sure if I'm pronouncing this correctly, but much more. There's far more litigation, and it's much easier to just, you know, if you disagree. Sue versus Canada. Yeah, it's much different, but I'll say conducting business, doing business in America is relieving.

Yes.

That's a much different experience.

Way different.

Everyone. The mindset's different. Right?

Yeah.

I remember back home, you know, I was always doing something or creating a business, and everyone was looking at me like, you know, why don't you just go to work like everybody else? You know, whereas. And that's fine. You know, I admire. My best friend is corporate. And we laugh because I say, I could never do what you do. And she said, I could never do what you do. Which is fine, right? But if you're entrepreneurial or you want to do a little bit more United States, you just feel more support in that way. And even, like with networking events and growing your business, seems like everyone wants to help one another. I didn't feel that so much when I was in Canada.

That's so true. Because it. I don't know. When you really embrace being an entrepreneur, I think in either country, you become unemployable. I share this with our teammates all the time. I could not be an employee ever again. I wouldn't like the employer, the employer wouldn't like me. That is just the nature of really embracing being an entrepreneur. And in America, I got to share this. So, Rich, you're going to laugh at this, too. So when I first moved to Florida and we were just picking up some essentials, and we had purchased a property in Riverview, and so we went to Walmart just to pick up some essentials. And I walk in the door and I see this end cap of Corona, okay? And like, a flat of Corona for, like, $19. You would pay $642 for that in Canada. Like, it was just. And I said to one of the associates, just in good humor, I, you might want to check that. There's no way that can be the right price. He said, no, no, no, that's the right price. And so everything was so inexpensive. And then in the aisle, right around that end cap, there was Molson Canadian, and it had a big import sticker on it. And the price was like two and a half times what you would pay. And so I was just browsing the store, just genuinely curious about this. But then I got my first paycheck, and it was 20% more. My salary hadn't changed one iota, going from point A to point B. So I called my boss and I said, something's wrong. The company deposited too much money. And he said to me, with no joke, and then he literally hung up on me. It was kind of hilarious. But he said to me, there's no state income tax there, dummy. So it was like this instant increase in pay. Everything about it was just amazing. Hence why we're doing business there again now. It's just a great country to do business in. So is Canada. I mean, I'm not saying Canada's not a great place to do business. We gainfully employ a lot of really wonderful people, and we contribute to growing the economy. But for heaven's sakes, when the government tells you that the solution to drowning is more water, something's wrong.