santz92

Hey all!

i am a 25 year old male with a business which deals with healthy pre-prepared meals, being delivered to the UK, i have a clothing line and sell gym merchandise.

my dream since being a teenager has always been to move to the U.S mainly California! i visited this beautiful city in the summer in 2016 and it cemented my decision to move over one day. I had an absolutely incredible experience there.

id like to move over to the US and expand my business especially the pre-prepared meals. (clothing and gym merch is worldwide shipping, everything is on hand just get orders and ship out). The meal prep is a bit more difficult as you need to do particular inspections and need a kitchen. I understand the health and fitness niche is heavy in California which is another reason why id love to move over there as it suits perfectly with the business's i do.

my question is: How can i get dual UK/US citizenship and start my new life in the US? this is an absolute dream of mine and i know all dreams can be conquered.
is there a particular business dual citizenship that i can get?
what if i have a friend who can sponsor me?

i look forward to hearing your advice, im so excited!

best regards!

Noorah101

For now, you need to think in terms of which visa you can get that allows you to live and work in the USA. Cituzenship would be very far into the future, if ever. Not all visas lead to permanent residency, and you can't become a citizen until you've been a PR for several years.

So, take a look at our Wiki article called "Pulaski's Ways". It lists ask the possible visas to the USA. If you see one that applies to you, chime on back to discuss.

By the way, California is a state, not a city.

Rene

Twinkle0927

Have you read the sticky at the top of the page that explains all the possible routes into the USA? Beware, the US is one if the most difficult countries to be able to move to and for the vast majority of people it will never happen.

Where did you visit in 2016? You mention California but refer to it as a beautiful "city". California is a huge state, not a city. The problem with picking one specific place to want to move to limits your options even further.

Do you have enough to qualify for an investor visa?

How is the company established in the U.K.? How many employees do you have? If you have employees that could continue to run the business in the U.K. without you, you could establish a new branch in the US and then transfer yourself. Do you actually have premises or is this all an online, back bedroom, kind of job? If that's the case, there is no visa for that situation.

Dual citizenship is a long way away. To become a citizen you must first become a permanent resident. A work visa doesn't necessarily guarantee residency. So it's possible you may never become a citizen. You don't have to be a citizen to work here. But you do have to have a visa to get here and that's your biggest hurdle right now.

Noorah101

As for the friend who can sponsor you... can you provide more details? Is the friend wanting to hire you to work in his/her company? Are they wanting to be a business partner in a startup company? Is it a romantic love interest leading to marriage?

"Sponsor me" is too vague.

Rene

santz92

Hey Noorah101,

sorry i meant state haha! im just so used to using the word City as i live in the UK.

i completely understand itd take a long time to get a citizenship if ever. Ill look into the Visas and come back here and update which may be suitable for me. will also look into Pulaskis ways. many many thanks!

santz92

Ill be reading the stickies now thank you! iv seen many people emigrate over, they make it sound so easy!

i visited Los Angeles, California in 2016, i dont mind moving anywhere aslong as its in California. its just so appealing to me. if i wanted to narrow down further itd be anywhere in the Southern California region.

ill have to look into how much id need for an investor visa

the company is well established in the UK, i have enough employees to run the business whilst i am away and indeed the plan is to move to the US and branch out the business over to the US.

id have to look into the visa route in this case and then oneday fingers cross be able to get dual citizenship when/if the time is right.

i am eager to branch out the business to the US, i have many brand ambassadors who also represent my company who live there.

santz92

the friend who can sponsor me is a resident of the US, he doesnt have a business so can not hire me to work in the field of work he does.

if it makes it easier for me to get a visa, id be happy to make him a business partner subject to contractual agreement. So whenever i do return to the UK for a time he can overlook the business in the US while i am away.

scrubbedexpat099

Open a US Subsidiary would seem the obvious route.

Noorah101

Only a resident of the USA, not a citizen? If he's not going to hire you or marry you, then he probably can't "sponsor" you.

You would have to discuss this with him and work up the financial aspect of it. Do your research on investment visas and see what comes up.

Rene

santz92

the business's that i own is under one company with different branches under it for example

*** is the company name

*** Clothing
*** Meal Preps
*** Gym Merchandise


would that qualify to be a sort of subsidiary?

Twinkle0927

Is this a company we are likely to have heard of? You say you deliver prepared meals. Are we talking pizza delivery? Or those meal kits like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh? I think both markets are pretty much saturated here in the US but California is a whole other game... crazier things have happened there.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that what works in the U.K. will also work here. Alone the logistics of delivering something perishable like food in the heat of southern California and with the larger distances that need to be covered will mean that you have to re-think everything. Added to that is the minefield of legislation regarding food (hygiene rules, labeling laws, banned ingredients, etc). Each state has its own laws and you might find another state is "easier" to get started.

santz92

sorry i meant he is a citizen, as in born and bred in the US. god, this stuff is baffling! lol.

im looking into Pulaskis ways right now

Noorah101

You might want to have a 1-time consultation with an immigration attorney to discuss the various business/investment paths to the USA.

You'd have to establish a branch of the company in the USA, making sure the UK side continues to run, and hire US citizens to work in the USA branch.

Rene

Noorah101

It is, indeed! You are learning a whole new language of "immigtation-speak". Words have very specific meanings. It's a learning curve.

Rene

Rete

You might want to remove the company name if it is the true name.