RhianC

Hi all

I have just returned from a holiday in Florida, and after spending most of my childhood holidays there and returning as an adult, together myself and my boyfriend have decided we would hopefully like to move over there.

I am 24 and own my own house, have 5 years admin experience and several years of cash handling/food prep.

We have a little girl who is 7 who would also be coming over with us if we went ahead.

Does anyone know how I can start the ball rolling?

What visa would I need?

How would I get jobs there?

I would literally work anywhere.

I have a trust fund which i can get money from if needed if the US use financials as a big part.

Thanks in advance

(I am aware that being on holiday somewhere is very different than living there, and we have took this into consideration)

BenK91

The US is by far one of the hardest countries to obtain a visa to live and work. Most people will come to the US as nothing more than a tourist on holiday. Unless one of you is a US citizen or has an employer willing to spend a lot of money to transfer you out then I guess you'll just be having holidays in the US and not much else.

You could also look into an investment visa, but I'm fairly certain you need a few hundred thousand dollars for this - and apparently it's the visa from hell.

Someone with more experience will be along shortly.

Rete

Have a read and see if you or your bf fit any of the categories:

Pulaski's Ways: How to Live and Work in the USA : British Expat Wiki

Jerseygirl

Welcome to BE.

The US is one of the most difficult countries on the planet for Brits to move to. Please take a read through the following...if you fit into one of the categories...you may be in with a chance!!

Pulaski's Ways: How to Live and Work in the USA : British Expat Wiki

If not then I’m afraid you will have to settle for holidays.

mikelincs

Please be aware that visas for the US, should you qualify, are for married couples only.

scrubbedexpat099

Well not quite but I get where you are coming from.

What does the BF do, I see no route based on your situation, could he get a job transfer, then you just need a marriage certificate.

Pulaski

Unless you are thinking of self-employment/investment, work visas are skewed heavily towards jobs needing a degree or similar levels of knowledge and experience.

Hypothetically if you or your husband had a job that might support a visa application, please note that only an employer can initiate the process to get a visa. There is no way for anyone to obtain a work visa and then tout that around looking for work.

Twinkle0927

I would seriously reconsider Florida with a young child - have you looked into schools there and their performance? It might frighten you.

As you have probably seen, it is extremely difficult to immigrate to the USA unless you fall into one of a small number of restricted categories (and then it's very easy, ironically). If you do, let us know and we can walk you through the procedure. If not, it's best we don't waste any more time.

One thing I will say to anyone who thinks the grass is always greener and that living in the USA is a "dream": think very carefully WHY you want to do this. You are proposing uprooting a family, including a young child, to a country 4,000 miles from home that you know nothing about living in, where you know no one, and where life is not going to be what you thought it would be. Your child will have to leave friends and grandparents, cousins, etc behind. It will be miserable for her. I speak from bitter experience - my parents are from two different countries and were constantly at war over which country was better for us children. At around the same age as your daughter I was dragged to a country where I had never lived before (only visited), had to leave my home, my friends, my pets, my extended family behind and go to a new school where I was the "foreign kid". It was horrible. Please think very carefully. Especially as you sound desperate ("I would literally work anywhere" - being poor in this country is a LOT worse than being poor in the U.K. In fact, the poverty here is on a scale not seen in modern Britain. The biggest cause of personal bankruptcy here is medical expenses. People just cannot afford to be ill. If that's not enough to put you off....).

It's good that you've been able to enjoy foreign holidays. I'm guessing you have at least 4 weeks of annual leave each year. My husband works a minimum wage job here. He's a landscaper for a very established nationwide company that are very respected and have many contracts for government and city council places such as public parks. It's certainly no "fly-by-night" operation. He gets no paid annual leave at all. And it's perfectly legal. All he gets are public holidays such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc. This is very common for minimum-wage and manual workers. Be careful what you wish for, especially if you are considering taking a low-paid job here (not that you can get a visa for such a job anyway). I am to consider myself "fortunate" that I get 17 days per year excluding public holidays. The lifestyle you have now, with annual foreign holidays, most likely would not be achievable here in the equivalent roles. Foreign holidays are certainly a middle-class pursuit here.

RhianC

I have seen on afew things that if someone could sponsor me then this would help.

My aunty is American and a full time American citizen. Could she help?

I know this is wishful thinking and probably won't happen, but I would like to see if I can get somewhere with it without giving up

christmasoompa

That might be a possible visa route, depending on the amount you can access? The Wiki link given above gives info on the investment option.

Also, your job isn't one that would lead to an employment based visa, but what does your partner do?

Nope - the 'Pulaskis Ways' link given above tells you the relatives that could sponsor you, but I'm afraid Aunt isn't one of them.

But if you can give people more info about the trust fund amount and your partners job, it may be that there is an option there for you.

Best of luck to you and welcome to BE.

Twinkle0927

Aunts cannot petition for nieces.

I'm not sure what a being "American and a full-time American citizen" is? But it doesn't matter, she cannot petition for you.

Did you read the link that was provided? We can promise you that these are the *only* options for Brits to move here. Everyone who has moved here has done so because they fall into one of those categories. There are no hidden tricks or secrets. If there were, they wouldn't be hidden or secret for long. How many people do you think there are around the world who want to move here? Millions. And there's a reason why they are not all here. They're not eligible.

RhianC

I have near £400,000 in one trust fund and half of that in another

BenK91

I would seriously think twice about spending your trust fund money on moving to a country that you haven't lived in before.

I'm fairly sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but investment visa's don't lead to a green card.

So if and when your money runs out, you then have to up-heave your family and return to the UK... Doesn't sound worth it to me.

Genuine question; what do you like about the US so much that makes you want to live here? A couple of trips to DisneyWorld certainly don't reflect what it's actually like to live and work in the US.

christmasoompa

Aha! Research the EB-5 visa route which could work for you, although I think you'd need to be prepared to lose your investment, so depends on how much you want to move I guess? But a forum search will bring up some relevant threads and info.

Good luck.

christmasoompa

EB-5 is essentially buying green cards for all the family, she would have enough for that if prepared to risk/lose it.