Moving to the US
Discussion
Bit of a random question that someone may have an answer to.
Has anyone relocated to the US from the UK on a permanent basis? Things are serious with the other half and decided I'd like to move out there for a while. Work is a possible avenue, but ideally I'd like to also consider applying for the green card...
So if anyone has any tips or experiences (attorney references etc) then it would be most appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Has anyone relocated to the US from the UK on a permanent basis? Things are serious with the other half and decided I'd like to move out there for a while. Work is a possible avenue, but ideally I'd like to also consider applying for the green card...
So if anyone has any tips or experiences (attorney references etc) then it would be most appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Not a simple question to answer but I have done it so I'll try and give an insight.
If the other half is not American,
Easiest way by far is to transfer internally in a company. When I say easy it still isn't. Going this route you are having to prove that you are "better" than an American. Can be tough. You have to have a skill that has taken years of education and experience to achieve. Once you go this route you will have a limited term visa of 3 years. (could be 5 if you can prove you are a manager) It can be extended by 2 years but you are still expected to leave. If you want to be permanent from here you apply for a green card. If you are a manager it can take a year. If you are not it can take 7 years. Once you have a green card it has to be renewed every few years so you apply for citizenship by pledging to the flag. Each stage will cost several thousand dollars and will cause frustration
If the other half is an American,
Get married and fill out a load of forms and pay a few thousand dollars. They will give you a green card in a couple of months. I did this after spending 4 years in the work green car queue. If you have been married less than 2 years you have to prove your marriage after the 2 year date to get a full green card. Again this green card has to be renewed so you would go for citizenship to be permanent.
Hope this overview helps.
If the other half is not American,
Easiest way by far is to transfer internally in a company. When I say easy it still isn't. Going this route you are having to prove that you are "better" than an American. Can be tough. You have to have a skill that has taken years of education and experience to achieve. Once you go this route you will have a limited term visa of 3 years. (could be 5 if you can prove you are a manager) It can be extended by 2 years but you are still expected to leave. If you want to be permanent from here you apply for a green card. If you are a manager it can take a year. If you are not it can take 7 years. Once you have a green card it has to be renewed every few years so you apply for citizenship by pledging to the flag. Each stage will cost several thousand dollars and will cause frustration
If the other half is an American,
Get married and fill out a load of forms and pay a few thousand dollars. They will give you a green card in a couple of months. I did this after spending 4 years in the work green car queue. If you have been married less than 2 years you have to prove your marriage after the 2 year date to get a full green card. Again this green card has to be renewed so you would go for citizenship to be permanent.
Hope this overview helps.
My mother is married to a US citizen and relocated there about ten years ago I think. As I understand it, she found it easier to get her green card based on her work than on her being married, even though they had been married and lived here in the UK for several years before they went to live in the US.
As a writer, journalist and TV producer though there are a range of rules that cover those industries which as I understand it make it easier to get a green card than normal but you need to prove you have worked in those industries for significant periods of times and have had TV shows / movies made and been published fairly frequently in well known publications. As a writer I think you need to prove you have had a certain number of books published via a publisher so self publication is no good unless you go on to solve large numbers.
Generally speaking though, to get visas and green cards, especially coming from the UK, is a bit of a nightmare. Looking at doing it at the moment and it is not easy at all but being married to an American should make it a fairly simple process, but not fast or cheap!
HTH
As a writer, journalist and TV producer though there are a range of rules that cover those industries which as I understand it make it easier to get a green card than normal but you need to prove you have worked in those industries for significant periods of times and have had TV shows / movies made and been published fairly frequently in well known publications. As a writer I think you need to prove you have had a certain number of books published via a publisher so self publication is no good unless you go on to solve large numbers.
Generally speaking though, to get visas and green cards, especially coming from the UK, is a bit of a nightmare. Looking at doing it at the moment and it is not easy at all but being married to an American should make it a fairly simple process, but not fast or cheap!
HTH
As stated, the easiest way to emigrate to the USA is through marriage to a USC. There is no question about that.
Secondly, remember that in the case of employment based visas, it's not you that does the applying. Your employer is the sponsor, you are the beneficiary. As such, the bulk of the work to achieve an L or H type work visa - and all of the associated cost, is bourne by the sponsor, rather than you.
Not wishing to be a pedantic smart ass, but a couple of inaccuracies need to be corrected, so that you are not misinformed.
In the case of an inter-company transfer (L1-A or B) your employer (not you, remember - unless you are the owner) does not need to demonstrate that you are "better than an American". They do need to demonstrate that you are qualified to perform the specified executive managerial role (L1-A) or the specialized employee role (L1-B).
Unless you possess very specific, scientific, artistic or cultural expertise, or you are a refugee, or you have a very significant amount of cash that you are willing to trade, a green card isn't available until you have been through the emplyment visa mill. The more highly qualified and experienced you are, the easier that process is for your employer to achieve, assuming they can be pursuaded to petition for it on your behalf. Some won't, because LPR status means that you are free to resign from their employment and remain in legal status - which you cannot do whilst in L or H status.
In cases where you are sponsored by an entity that is not your current employer, it becomes a little more complex and expensive. Labor Certification is the process by which your sponsor demonstrates that it is impractical or unreasonable to hire a USC or LPR to do the job they have in mind for you. Likewise it is long-winded, expensive and paperwork-heavy, so you really have to be talented and in demand for your sponsor to justify the hassle in current economic times.
Being Irish allows to you to enter the annual Diversity Lottery, whereby around 100,000 visas that lead to LPR (green card status) are alotted to appropriate citizens of certain nations (UK isn't one of them). So being a bog-trotter helps get you in the race, it by no means guarantees you a place on the podium. You put your name in the hat, along with around 2 million other hopefuls and cross your fingers.
On a more personal note, you really do need to question yourself on your motives for making a move like this - and distancing yourself from a rocky relationship might not be a good one, in my opinion. Despite having some very attractive aspects, life in the US isn't the catch-all that many hope or believe it to be. The grass is not always greener.
Secondly, remember that in the case of employment based visas, it's not you that does the applying. Your employer is the sponsor, you are the beneficiary. As such, the bulk of the work to achieve an L or H type work visa - and all of the associated cost, is bourne by the sponsor, rather than you.
Not wishing to be a pedantic smart ass, but a couple of inaccuracies need to be corrected, so that you are not misinformed.
In the case of an inter-company transfer (L1-A or B) your employer (not you, remember - unless you are the owner) does not need to demonstrate that you are "better than an American". They do need to demonstrate that you are qualified to perform the specified executive managerial role (L1-A) or the specialized employee role (L1-B).
Unless you possess very specific, scientific, artistic or cultural expertise, or you are a refugee, or you have a very significant amount of cash that you are willing to trade, a green card isn't available until you have been through the emplyment visa mill. The more highly qualified and experienced you are, the easier that process is for your employer to achieve, assuming they can be pursuaded to petition for it on your behalf. Some won't, because LPR status means that you are free to resign from their employment and remain in legal status - which you cannot do whilst in L or H status.
In cases where you are sponsored by an entity that is not your current employer, it becomes a little more complex and expensive. Labor Certification is the process by which your sponsor demonstrates that it is impractical or unreasonable to hire a USC or LPR to do the job they have in mind for you. Likewise it is long-winded, expensive and paperwork-heavy, so you really have to be talented and in demand for your sponsor to justify the hassle in current economic times.
Being Irish allows to you to enter the annual Diversity Lottery, whereby around 100,000 visas that lead to LPR (green card status) are alotted to appropriate citizens of certain nations (UK isn't one of them). So being a bog-trotter helps get you in the race, it by no means guarantees you a place on the podium. You put your name in the hat, along with around 2 million other hopefuls and cross your fingers.
On a more personal note, you really do need to question yourself on your motives for making a move like this - and distancing yourself from a rocky relationship might not be a good one, in my opinion. Despite having some very attractive aspects, life in the US isn't the catch-all that many hope or believe it to be. The grass is not always greener.
Gassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff