What type of visa do I need?

[Tom Woodrow 0]

Myself and my girlfriend are looking to move to Ohio to live with our American firends. However, I have no idea what type of visa we would need. Can anybody please help me?

Many thanks.

[DoneWaiting 15]

Planning to move with your american friends?

Do you have a job contract?

Are you coming to study?

There is a protocol to follow and you must know what exactly you plan to do in order to present and establish financial responsibility to the Embassy, this will show the US Embassy you are able/capable to support yourself while living in the USA and your intentions are solely based on those merits.

There are other options, but I am assuming from your post, your are just friend and the other options wont apply to you.

[Tom Woodrow 0]

Many thanks for your reply

Well our American friends live in Ohio and they have invited us to live with them. We have no jobs lined up here and I am currently completing my teacher training. Would my application be better if I had a job lined up already for when I move to America? I have been looking into teaching jobs but schools simply do not want to know me yet until I have qualified.

Sorry if this sounds confusing?

Many thanks for your reply

Well our American friends live in Ohio and they have invited us to live with them. We have no jobs lined up here and I am currently completing my teacher training. Would my application be better if I had a job lined up already for when I move to America? I have been looking into teaching jobs but schools simply do not want to know me yet until I have qualified.

Sorry if this sounds confusing?

[epsonderby 85]

You need to have a job offer lined up and that's normally managed by your potential employer and their lawyers. It's not something you can DIY. Unfortunately, you can't just come and live in the US and hope everything falls into place - The US government like to see you have stuff lined up and the means to support yourself. You could apply to study in the US after you've finished your studies perhaps?

The USCIS website has information about people wanting to work or study in the US. Here's the link:

USCIS - Working or Studying in the US

[Harsh_77 716]

First, what country you are from might help to better answer your question as I believe US govt has special visas for citizens for some country.

Second – just coz your friend is inviting you to live in US does not mean anything. The invitation has no value.

If you want to work in US – you need to have US employer who is willing to hire you and sponsor you for the visa. Once that is in place their lawyer would file for the paperwork.

Same would apply for your GF too, your GF just cannot move to US coz you are moving to US.

There are no visa for GF’s all the dependant visas are for spouse.

Hope this helps.

[Boiler 43,581]

And Teaching is not likely to be a good line.

[Tom Woodrow 0]

Many thanks for all the replies!! I am coming over from England! So bascially, you guys are telling me I need a job lined up and getiting into teaching is so difficult???

[epsonderby 85]

It's a complex issue and something you might consider speaking to an immigration specialist about. Like I mentioned before, work visas aren't something you can do yourself - you need a company willing to hold the position for you whilst they sponsor you, they have to show that an American, or someone who already has the right to work in the US can't do the job (usually) and it's expensive for the employer to sponsor you too.

There are many more teachers than openings in the US right now. I seriously doubt you'd find an employer willing to sponsor you and wait the time it would take when they likely have candidates already over-qualified and legal to work.

Not wanting to be a negative nancy, but to give you a reality check as to your future plans. You'll need to do your research and find out if your qualifications will even be accepted in Ohio and whether they have any specific requirements for teachers in their state. I would then recommend contacting schools local to your friend and testing the water. If local schools aren't an option then you could look further afield, but it defeats the first part of your plan which was to live with friends.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do in the future.

[canadian_wife 1,791]

Many thanks for all the replies!! I am coming over from England! So bascially, you guys are telling me I need a job lined up and getiting into teaching is so difficult???

Yes, getting into teaching is quite difficult. I teach a subject that is a critical need and I still had trouble getting a job. It is a tough economy and education felt it too

good luck

PS - school boards will have a difficult time sponsoring a foreign teacher

[kzielu 1,147]

Many thanks for all the replies!! I am coming over from England! So bascially, you guys are telling me I need a job lined up and getiting into teaching is so difficult???

Not only lined up but you need your future employer to apply for a visa that typically costs several $k. Using "I am coming over" is a bit premature - you have no way to come here legally to live until you find an employer willing to sponsor you for that - which is pretty much impossible. Also, keep in mind work visas are temporary by nature. It's not a permanent residency and they do expire after some time...

[Owen_London 65]

Myself and my girlfriend are looking to move to Ohio to live with our American firends. However, I have no idea what type of visa we would need. Can anybody please help me?

Many thanks.

I'm afraid this will be a reality check for you:

For UK citizens, there are two main ways to gain immigrant entry into the US.

1) Through marriage. Assuming neither your girlfriend nor you are US citizens, this will not work for you.

2) Through employment. This will unfortunately also be difficult for you. You would have to find a prospective employer first, and then that employer would have to prove that it would be difficult for them to recruit a US resident to do the job they want to offer you. I've just been through this process, and arrived a week ago after a few months of processing. However, I have a post-graduate degree required for my job, 15 years experience, and I've transferred within my company.

You can enter the US for up to 90 days as tourists on the visa waiver program to visit your friends. I think this is the closest you are likely to get to living with them.

[Andrea&Henry 311]

My aunt and uncle moved in maybe 12 years ago to the US. They came with their daughters with a INVESTOR VISA. Basically, a investor visa is a type of visa for someone who wants to make bussiness in the US, showing you have a big amount of money and the bussiness you want to start, creates employments. My uncle and aunt came here with maybe $750,000 or more, opened a bakery store, an auto parts, etc etc. They had the investor visa status for 5 years and then the US granted them a greencard holder status for 5 years more. Now they all are waiting for their naturalization process. Maybe if you want and have the money to invest in america, talk to a lawyer and explore what your options are.

[jaycali 415]

Many thanks for all the replies!! I am coming over from England! So bascially, you guys are telling me I need a job lined up and getiting into teaching is so difficult???

As others have said, moving to the US can be a very complicated and complex process. The majority of posters on this forum are immediate family members of US citizens or citizens with immediate relatives (spouses, children, parents, siblings) trying to come here, and even then, we're looking at half a year and up to many years of processing.

It'll depend what you want to do in the US, and how long you're looking to stay. For anything more than a short visit up to 90 days, you'll need a visa of some sort. To apply for a visa, you need some sort of foundation for applying for that visa - For example, to apply for a student visa, you need to have been accepted into a college/university. Likewise, to move to the US for work, you need to have a valid job offer, and an employer willing to sponsor that work visa. Now, the point of a work visa is to assure that US employers are able to fill vacant positions, while still making sure no American worker is unemployed as a result. There are three main types of work visas; L1, H1B and H2B.

L1 is for intra-company transfers. Say you hold a high position within a company that operates both in the UK and the US. An L1 would allow your company to transfer you from the UK branch to the US branch.

H1B is for highly skilled workers. To qualify, you would need at least a bachelor's degree in some sort of specialized field, and your employer would have to prove that they can not find any American to do the same job. In order to qualify for a teaching job, you would need something like a phd.

H2B is for seasonal workers. Most often, these visas are granted to foreign workers looking to work short term in an area of the country where the employer cannot readily find willing and able Americans to fill the position.

Getting a work visa for a teaching job, especially in Ohio can be an extremely difficult task unfortunately. Not only can teaching jobs be hard to come by, but in order to hire you, the employer needs to pay thousands of dollars in legal fees, and prove that they could not find a willing and able American to do the job they're hiring you for.

Edited October 16, 2012 by Jay Jay

[JB007 4]

Here is a short story of two of my fellow co-workers, how they got to work and live in the US:

Both came to the US on a student visa to finish their master degree in Computer Engineering. They were later recruited by my employer once they graduated. My employer (their sponsor) helped them "convert" their student visa to a work visa (H1B I believe). Now both have applied for green cards but the process is lengthy (takes about 5 years) and is not free of conditions - one is to be employed. You get the point... no job => deportation and you cannot move out of your state.

So assuming everything works out and you have a sponsor, keep your job for 5 years til you get your green card it will take another 5 years until you become citizen.

I'd say you're probably better off trying to apply for the Diversity Lottery and get the green card right away if you're lucky.

Edited October 17, 2012 by JB007

[Boiler 43,581]

You can not move out of your State?