Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Are you sure the visa he may/may not get will allow you to work? (You will have to be married regardless).

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Others will help you with the specifics of your questions, however just wanted to say I moved to Miami in June with my family and LOVE it here. Very few English but I like that. I do know that unless you are eligible for a visa in your own right then you need to be married for a derivative of your partner's visa. I say do it!

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

I hear ya! we spend 10 yrs + talking about ways we could do it before an opportunity came along...

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Hi Rachel,

if he's transferring with his existing company, its probably an L visa. You would need to be married in order to get an L2 visa, but that visa allows you to apply for work authorization in the USA, which is a good thing.

It would be quite difficult, I'd say, to get a work visa of your own, for teaching, and especially being so specific as to the city.

Even with permission to work, you may need to get qualified to teach in the USA...others can help you with that.

Rene

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

It is likely to be a L visa.
As others have said if you want to work, you have to marry and apply for EAD once you arrive in USA ( and that wilt take 60-100 days )
So if you are married and spouse visa is L, it will be about 100 days before you can work having landed in US

If you think this might be a permanent move, then you should discuss Green Card

Now is the time to review your passport expiry dates.
You do not want to have to go through renewal / extensions / drives license issues soon after you arrive
Anything below 2021 and I recommend you get new ones now.

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Not sure what passport renewal has to do with anything: I recently renewed mine from CA and it took 5 days from sending it over to it being returned to me, probably much quicker than it would have been if I'd have done it from the UK.

In response to the OP: if he's being transferred, it will likely be on an L1 visa and, if married, you'll be able to get an L2 visa through him. You'll need to wait a couple of months after arrival for your EAD (employment authorisation document) before you can actually start work. I'd look at private or international schools though, as I'm not sure public schools (state schools). Bear in mind that in Miami, a large proportion of the population speaks Spanish as a first language.

It will be pretty much impossible for you to accompany him without being married so you will need to seriously consider this.

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

If you're here on a non-immigrant visa then your I-94 expiration date is tied to your passport expiration so if your passport expires before your petition expiration date you'll be admitted for a shorter duration.

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Exactly

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

I lived in Miami for many, many years.

You will need to be licensed to teach by the State of Florida. The Florida Department of Education should have information about how overseas qualified teachers can get their registrations. It will likely involve an exam, and perhaps some top-up courses. You have not mentioned if you are primary or secondary - those are different certifications in Florida.

You apply directly to school principals. The Miami-Dade Public Schools web site has information about this.

Don't bother applying until you have Florida teaching certification.

This isn't a particularly good time to look for a position because the school year has just started. Around February, March etc staffing for next year will begin and people will start moving around and applying, and that will create vacancies.

The job market for teachers isn't great, but not impossible, though with no local experience or local qualifications (and presumably no Spanish skills) you may find it very difficult.

Miami schools vary wildly in quality. Some public high schools there routinely send batches of kids to Ivy League universities, and some public schools are barely functional.

You could also do relief teaching to get your name in circulation, but the pay is terrible (something like $80 per day). A long time ago you didn't need to be a certified teacher to do that, but that information could be out-of-date.

Keep in mind Miami is a huge, sprawling city and a car is essential. You could easily end up in a school an hour or more from where you live.

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner
 

Takes 4 to 5 months to get EAD so would be the next school year anyway.

Re: Moving to Miami, Florida with partner