Looking to move to USA for a year and rent
Discussion
smifffymoto said:
I get the impression from these posts that ‘America’ thinks anybody that visits for more than a few weeks wants to immigrate or be an illegal.
They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
Because people do enter the country and then disappear. They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
Our own rules allow a 6 month stay for USA citizens coming to the UK, so not that much different to the VWP.
smifffymoto said:
I get the impression from these posts that ‘America’ thinks anybody that visits for more than a few weeks wants to immigrate or be an illegal.
They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
It's been hard to resist the impulse to tell them that I've arrived to sponge off their free healthcare and generous social security...They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
smifffymoto said:
I get the impression from these posts that ‘America’ thinks anybody that visits for more than a few weeks wants to immigrate or be an illegal.
They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
I came here in 96. Flew from Gatwick to Shannon, then transferred to an Air India flight to Sanford Florida.They can’t fathom some people are happy living where they do and only want a long holiday.
At Sanford, immigration started X-Raying all the luggage, and they pulled about 20 large families of obvious Indian heritage out of the line.
They wanted to know why, on a visitors visa, they had bought cooking utensils with them, and most were denied entry.
A few years old, but still valid I believe.
https://www.npr.org/2019/01/16/686056668/for-seven...
So he tells me most states are dropping the IDP requirement. FL dropped it about 5-6 years ago, and even then it wasn't enforced.
Apparently there was a campaign to get people getting IDPs again ( this would have been around the time he told me I needed one to go north) but as you would expect it wasn't popular with the tourist board and they dropped it.
Which leads me onto the other thing he says to watch out for is not having your signed rental agreement either in print or electronic copy if stopped. 2nd degree misdemeanor apparently. (what ever that is - probably a weekend at Disney World?)
Anyway all he is interested in is your passport, UK DL and rental agreement should you get into bother.
He is not an expert on AL but he is fairly sure they still operate on the old system so IDP. GA is the same as FL.
Apparently there was a campaign to get people getting IDPs again ( this would have been around the time he told me I needed one to go north) but as you would expect it wasn't popular with the tourist board and they dropped it.
Which leads me onto the other thing he says to watch out for is not having your signed rental agreement either in print or electronic copy if stopped. 2nd degree misdemeanor apparently. (what ever that is - probably a weekend at Disney World?)
Anyway all he is interested in is your passport, UK DL and rental agreement should you get into bother.
He is not an expert on AL but he is fairly sure they still operate on the old system so IDP. GA is the same as FL.
red_slr said:
cashmax said:
red_slr said:
By the way you cant leave FL without an IDP. (The 1940s one)
Pretty sure thats wrong. I have been stopped in Georgia several times without issue. Perhaps this was an old rule.
It was all done using the VWP.
I would visit for one, two or three weeks each month.
Visited many States, renting cars as I flew from one to the next.
I never had issues with my UK drivers licence and was never asked for an IDP.
When the VWP came fully online and the Border Control Officer were able to see my visits on screen they were a 'little' shocked and I got quite a grilling.
Fortunately most of my time in the US was to provide voluntary support to various Rail Engineering Safety Committee's, including Federal.
Once this was established and noted against my visit record, I had no further problems. Job lasted 13 years.
If I was in a position like the OP I would use the VWP and keep it flexible.
3, 4, 5 or 6 months in the US, a few weeks in the UK to plan the next adventure and then back to the US.
That way you can plan what area to suit the seasonal climates.
Sounds great.
Edited by so called on Wednesday 23 June 13:42
so called said:
If I was in a position like the OP I would use the VWP and keep it flexible.
3, 4, 5 or 6 months in the US, a few weeks in the UK to plan the next adventure and then back to the US.
That way you can plan what area to suit the seasonal climates.
Sounds great.
You can't do that using VWP. 90 days (89, if you don't count your exit travel day) is the maximum permitted. 3, 4, 5 or 6 months in the US, a few weeks in the UK to plan the next adventure and then back to the US.
That way you can plan what area to suit the seasonal climates.
Sounds great.
I've stopped plenty of tourists to Roswell from all over the world. If I was given, for example, a German drivers license I have no idea what I'm looking at or even if it's real, and the dispatcher has no way of checking foreign licenses. As long as the name on the car rental paperwork and the license were the same, off they went.
Matt Harper said:
so called said:
If I was in a position like the OP I would use the VWP and keep it flexible.
3, 4, 5 or 6 months in the US, a few weeks in the UK to plan the next adventure and then back to the US.
That way you can plan what area to suit the seasonal climates.
Sounds great.
You can't do that using VWP. 90 days (89, if you don't count your exit travel day) is the maximum permitted. 3, 4, 5 or 6 months in the US, a few weeks in the UK to plan the next adventure and then back to the US.
That way you can plan what area to suit the seasonal climates.
Sounds great.
I meant 1, 2, 3 months and then back to the UK.
For me that would still be great.
There's so much to see and do in the US and Canada.
Oregon wine region then dropping down to Napa/Sanoma in California before a highway 1 drive down to LA before heading on to San Diego or across to [Palm Springs and on into Arizona.
Florida sun sea and sand and the Keys.
New England in the fall etc., etc.
I wouldn't want to have a fixed base.
Edited by so called on Friday 25th June 10:50
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