droidguy72

Hi all,

First time user of the forum. I've taken a look at all the FAQs and would like to ask for a little advice on immigrating to the US from the UK with my family.

I have been offered a new job in the US, and I'm likely going to accept it. I currently work in in the UK and have lived and worked here from birth. Of course, I've yet to file immigration paperwork (or rather, my company has not kicked the process off yet). I have a family - two kids both under 5 and a fiancee. We are all UK born and my partner has also worked and lived here for her entire life.

While my company has not started the discussion on immigration paperwork, I've been looking at our options, and it seems quite complicated given we are not married. Has anyone here immigrated as an unmarried couple, particularly with children? It seems like I would arrive on a specialist worker visa, such as an H1B, and my partner would have to obtain a tourist visa. This gives her far less privileges than I would have. I'm not sure what my kids would file under.

We can get married before we leave if it makes the whole process easier, but I'd rather leave it as a last resort due to the financial burden of it. If my partner travels on a tourist visa as I understand it she would be granted at most 6 month extensions while we are living there. Would she be able to apply for a change of status after some time? Can we get married in the US once we are on our feet? And regarding the application itself - would we be subject to totally different visa processing times?

Apologies for the bunch of questions, but this forum seems like the only place where we can get some wise words from folk who have been through or observed a similar situation.

Thanks for reading my post - have a great weekend

civilservant

Getting married before the petition is sent is far and away your easiest solution. Discussion of any other possbile path is, to be frank, a waste of time.

You realize that the H1B is vastly oversubscribed, and even if you are lucky (at best 50% chance) that you'll not be starting until October next year, right?

By the way, are the children yours and your fiancees?

Rete

Questions:

Why would a company in the UK for whom you are currently employed sponsor you for an H visa rather than for an intracompany L visa?

Why do you consider marrying your 'partner' who you have lived with for a while and is the parent of your children be a financial burden?

You went as far as to call her a fiancée but still will not consent to marry her for immigration purposes, why is this?

Does your present company have an office in the US?

Will your partner be happy with only being allowed into the US on a B visa for 6 months at a time as a co-habiting partner?

Is she aware that if you come to work in the US with a work visa and the children on derivative visas, and if for whatever reason she is not allowed to renew the B visa at any time and the children are here in the US that she would have a court battle on her hands to reclaim the children if you decide not to allow them to leave the US?

Do you realize that there is nothing permanent about your coming to work and live in the US as per your subject line. The H visa is only good for a certain number of years and then must be renewed. The same, I believe, with the L visa. If the company were willing to accept the expense of filing for a green card for you and your children (partner is not eligible), only then can you consider living and working in the US as permanent.

shiversaint

This is very likely the distinction between marriage and a wedding. Pretty obvious.

SanDiegogirl

Presume this is a new job with a new company as you mention an H visa.

You need to get married, otherwise your partner will be applying for visa renewals throughout your stay in the US - and she might be refused.

If you are getting an H visa take into account that your wife will NOT be able to work as she will get an H4 visa.

H visa applications go in next April and the lucky ones get to start work next October.

Noorah101

It seems that you and your fiancee have plans to marry already (otherwise she wouldn't be a fiancee). What is your current timeline for marriage? Since your new employer can't file the petition until April 2018, that seems like plenty of time to arrange a small, inexpensive wedding in the UK so that you have the chance to immigrate as a family unit.

Rene

droidguy72

They're our kids, yes. H1B would have been my guess at what my company apply for. I guess it would be the L visa as another poster stated. They are a large corporation based in the US with UK offices and are sponsoring my move.

droidguy72

You're jumping to conclusions a little here. Its a burden in the sense a wedding would be difficult to afford and probably set us into debt for a while. We would have married a while ago if we had the money to make an occasion of it. We have the option of just signing the registry office papers but I'm more of a romantic than that

My company is US based with offices round the world. They are sponsoring my move there in order to boost the skills shortage in a particular location. I would not have managerial responsibilities so I guess that makes a green card application a little tricky?

Indeed it all sounds like we'd be better off getting married before we submit paperwork. I just wondered if anyone else had been through a similar situation.

Nutmegger

You would be marrying in order to keep your family together — can’t think of a better reason than that! And whipping into the register office with a couple of witnesses can be as romantic as you make it. Then have the big party when the budget allows. And no, you are not the first couple to plan a quick wedding in order to move to the US together.

SanDiegogirl

Right.... if your present company is tranferring you then THEY would apply for a an L1 visa (depending on your role it would either be an A or B category).

Your WIFE would obtain an L2 as would your children as they would be processed same time as you.

Your wife can work with an L2

Your company can put in the L1 application as soon as they like.

Loads of people on this forum have gone through this process - including me.

You can go to Green card from an L1 visa. You should get some form of commitment from your company that if everything works out OK they will sponsor you for a Green card.

droidguy72

Thanks for the advice. Any idea on the time scales of that visa category? Or is it more "how long is a piece of string"?

SanDiegogirl

3 to 4 months usually ? Mine took just three months to come through.

rpjs

It’s not unusual for folks to marry at a register office for immigration purposes and then have a big ceremony at a later date, often times keeping the original quiet. It’s also worth noting that being married in the US does carry some tax advantages too.

Rete

Mercury39

And some tax disadvantages too, depending on your situation
10 Ways Your Taxes Could Go Up If You Get Married