GeneralPowerpoint

Hello, and thanks in advance for any help.

My long-term gf has been offered a position in NYC through her British employer under an L-1A transfer that begins September 2016. We’re both senior executives in advertising agencies and we’re keen to make the move together for 3 year or so before returning the UK. We can each pull in salaries of $100’000 to $120’000. I have just under 8 years professional experience and while I don’t have a job yet, a recruiter I’ve spoken to in NYC is confident I will be able to find one.

I’ve done some research on what my potential options are, but I’d appreciate someone marking my homework and making sure I’m not mistaken, or haven’t missed a possible route.

As I understand it, my possible routes are;

L-2 – If we were to get married, I would qualify for an L-2 which would entitle me to work for any employer.

L-1A – Not entirely sure about this as I switched job 6 months ago, but before that I did work for a major international company for a continuous 2 years. Would this satisfy the L-1A requirement of being employed for a continuous 1 year period in the last 3 years, and mean I was eligible for an L-1A in my own right if I was to be re-employed by that previous employer in NYC?

E-1 or E-2 – If I was to receive a job offer for any ad agency ultimately owned by a British parent company I could qualify for one of these visas, which is apparently a common route for UK citizens in my position to transfer to NYC.

O-1 – I was a little intimidated by this route with mentios of nobel prizes. But I’ve been reassured elsewhere that these are not as difficult as they appear. This would allow me to work for any employer.

H-1B – I’ve ruled this out as I understand there is an annual cap and that has been met, and a new quota won’t begin until April 2017. This would also entitle me to work for any employer.

If all else fails we will take the marriage route. But in an ideal world I’d like to qualify for a visa in my own right so that if my gf’s employment suffers any issues we would not both be required to leave the country. E.g. Is it possible to enter on an L-2 and then build a case for an O-1 whilst working in the USA, or apply for an H-1B the following april?

Thanks,
General Powerpoint

Noorah101

The L-2 in and of itself doesn't allow you to work, but it allows you to apply for work authorization. It may take a couple of months to get the authorization, but then you can work for any employer.

With the H1B, you are not correct that you can work for any employer. You can only work for the sponsoring employer.

Yes, you can always build toward a different work visa while you are already working in the USA.

Rene

Chrisdc

There are a lot of O1s in advertising. You do need a sponsor. The bar is not as high as it may seem, especially if you have a portfolio of nationally-recognized work, industry awards, press coverage of your campaigns and a dozen industry fans willing to write letters in support. If O1 is appealing, I would suggest networking like crazy in NYC until you can find someone so enamoured with your talents that they are willing to spend the 5-10K or so to sponsor you.

You could also start your own agency with an USC friend and have that agency sponsor you.

HTH
Chris

GeneralPowerpoint

Thank you both, that's really helpful.

This has come about a little suddenly and I have to admit I'm slightly panicking about getting myself into a good position by September.

So far I've researched the visas above, I've spoken to a recruiter in NYC and will be flying over for interviews in July, and I'm speaking to an immigration lawyer this week to go through my options.

Is there anything else I should consider doing immediately, to give myself the best chance of being able to work in NYC by September?

I suppose if we go the L-2 route we should start to think about getting married pretty sharpish!

zerlesen

Not really, apart from planning a quick wedding ceremony. The L-2 is the least complicated route but, as Rene said, you apply for the EAD once you're already in-country, and they typically take 3 months to process.

On the other hand, if an O-1 or L-1 turns out to be viable, the petition can be expedited ("premium processing") for an additional fee, so your timeline isn't necessarily impossible. But the lawyer will walk you through all this.

Chrisdc

One thing to be aware of - I believe no-one will offer you a gig before you are actually living in the US. There may be special cases, but I would expect that to be more at the 250K salary level. It's an odd cultural thing. They tend to like to hire people that are already here.

Can you arrange to live off of one salary for a while? It's a bit tight in manhattan, but not impossible. ($4K rent x 12 months = 48K.)

Happy to talk about the mechanics of starting your own shop, having done it.

Chris

Nutmegger

But he can't "live" in the US without the appropriate visa to do so.

GeneralPowerpoint

I think I'll have to take my chances. I'm not sure I'd like to wait until my gf relocates and then try and engineer a job with the potential of living 3 months not working whilst I wait for an EAD (assuming we go L-2). I'm hoping my gf relocating will demonstrate enough commitment to the relocation to ease any worries.

We can certainly live frugally off one salary. I have enough savings to sustain me comfortably for 6 months or so, but I'm reluctant to spend them.

Starting my own shop isn't an avenue I'd take, but appreciate the offer of advice! Thank you.

GeneralPowerpoint

Worst comes to the worst I suppose I could get a B-2 cohabiting partner visa, which although I couldn't work, I assume I could at least solicit employment for another visa?

GeneralPowerpoint

I hadn't realised the delay in getting an EAD. I had assumed once entered on an L-2 I could commence work pretty quickly. Thanks for the heads up, that is a big help.

Rete

I'm not particularly dense, but the two above posts make no sense to me. You are reluctant to not be able to work for up 90 days while you wait for work authorization but are willing to come to the US on a B-2 which will never allow you to work while you look for someone willing to sponsor you for a different visa.

Seems like you are willing to cut off your nose to spite your face.

After thought: I don't know of any spousal visa, even one based on marriage to a US Citizen unless obtained at the US Consulate abroad, that would allow a spouse to work immediately. They all require the employment authorization document.

Fred16

Trackitt forum discussions has EAD still in progress, when applied in January

GeneralPowerpoint

I'm reluctant to relocate whilst not being able to work e.g. whilst I wait for an EAD.

But in a worst case scenario, where people won't even consider employing me unless I'm already living here, I would consider it. Although probably on an l-2 rather than a b-2. Might aswell get married.

So I have learned! Exactly those kinds of mistakes I was looking for someone to point out so the forums been pretty helpful!

Orangepants

This isn't the worst case scenario - it is the normal scenario. My OH and I got married so I could get here and get my own work visa. Didn't have the luxury of an L-2 which allows you to work. You can look for a position now and by adding that you will have right to work, will get you much further in the HR process than saying you need your own visa.

zerlesen

I hate to say it, but welcome to the wonderful world of US immigration, where three months *is* "pretty quickly". That's the target processing time for the I-765 - as Fred16 points out, they don't always manage it. If it's any consolation - it probably isn't - the very fact that L-2s can get unrestricted work authorization is a bit of an oddity in the grand scheme of things. (Compare to H-4, sometimes known around here as the "visa from hell".)

L-2 is way better than B-2, and scheduling a wedding to make the visa timeline work will seem like much less of a big deal in hindsight. Of course, you can still explore other options at the same time.