Moving to US temporary - what visa for my wife?

[asimmonds83 0]

Hi,

I am a duel US/ British citizen. I have been living in England for the last ten years. My wife, who is a UK citizen, and I want to move to America for a year. What visa does she need? She will not be working, just looking after our two children (both US citizens). I can't seem to find any visas that are appropriate for our situation. We don't need an imigration visa for her as we are not moving there permantley, nor is she working or studying. Essentially she will be going as a tourist, just longer than the usually 90 days typically allowed.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Andrew

[Hypnos 6,576]

As you say, there is no visa that fits your circumstances.

[canadian_wife 1,808]

Difficult. All I can suggest is that she uses the VWP to visit cautiously. Alternatively, she can apply for a B visa, but if denied she cannot use the VWP

good luck

Edited July 30, 2013 by canadian_wife

[atm 8]

Yes, there is no tourist visa that enables one to visit for a year. I see that your wife stays at home caring for your children, so coming and going for 90 days at a time, with no guarantee of being allowed back in t the US may be a problem for your family.

You could always apply for the immigrant visa IR-1 via DCF from the UK (only downside is the fee), but obviously when you leave the UK the visa would lapse. Personally that is what I might do - what if you then decide to stay longer in the US? That would be a real headache if your wife did not have an immigrant visa.

Good luck!

[lost_at_sea 995]

Yeah. No tourist visa for that length of time.

You can do DCF (see link in my signature for how that works) to get her an immigrant visa as your spouse.

There is a B1/2 visa, which is a tourist visa for trips of 6 months, but they tend not to issue them for countries with VWP.

[asimmonds83 0]

Thankyou for all your responses.

The immigration visa sounds like the most responsible way forward. One day we hope to move to the US permanently, but it would not be for at least 3 years. This is because my wife is studying in England to become a midwife, we hope to travel to the US during her maternity leave which last a year from the end of September. So, if we got her immigration visa, went to America for a year, then came back the the UK for a couple years, would the visa still be valid? Technically she is not emigrating until the second trip.

The other option seems more risky, and that is to travel to the US on the VWP for three month stints, periodically returning to the UK. As I understand it, this is not what it is intended for and she could be denied entry.

Still not really sure what to do, but thanks for your responses - will keep you updated

-Andy

[pushbrk 12,727]

Thankyou for all your responses.

The immigration visa sounds like the most responsible way forward. One day we hope to move to the US permanently, but it would not be for at least 3 years. This is because my wife is studying in England to become a midwife, we hope to travel to the US during her maternity leave which last a year from the end of September. So, if we got her immigration visa, went to America for a year, then came back the the UK for a couple years, would the visa still be valid? Technically she is not emigrating until the second trip.

The other option seems more risky, and that is to travel to the US on the VWP for three month stints, periodically returning to the UK. As I understand it, this is not what it is intended for and she could be denied entry.

Still not really sure what to do, but thanks for your responses - will keep you updated

-Andy

The visa dies the day it is used to enter the USA. Upon entry, she is granted Legal Permanent Resident Status. If you then plan to leave a year later and be gone for two years, she can apply for a re-entry permit, prior to leaving. This will allow her to return as a returning resident. Google: "maintaining permanent resident status USA" for more information. It's complicated but doable.

With an immigrant visa, you "immigrate" when you use it to enter the USA the first time. No way around that.

[orendamy 0]

You're the first person I've found with a similar situation! At least we are fortunate not to have to worry about being separated from children, as we don't have any yet. In our case, I'm the Canadian wife of a dual Canadian/US citizen. His career is taking him to the US for the next 1-2 years. My pay is insignificant compared to his, so it only matters that I can be in the country, not that I can work. After his job ends, we intend to return to Canada to live on a permanent basis, but we have enough ties in the US that we don't want to rule out the possibility of ever spending time there again in the future. If we go the visitor route, we'll still be separated at least half the year and I doubt I'd be granted entry anyway. If we go the immigration route, my understanding is that the wait times are so long the job might be over by the time i got a green card. We don't intend to stay long enough for me to get citizenship and so I'd have to surrender the GC when we left. I don't think a re-entry permit would be an option because I'd be on a CR-1 (we've been married 14 months). But it looks like having had a green card at one point will make future visits to the US will a much bigger hassle, because I will forever be viewed with suspicion of intending to immigrate again. If your information or experience differs, I would love to hear about it! Bet of luck to you and your wife

[TBoneTX 44,894]

*** Revived thread moved from CR-1 Process forum to the "What Visa Do I Need" forum. ***

[pushbrk 12,727]

You're the first person I've found with a similar situation! At least we are fortunate not to have to worry about being separated from children, as we don't have any yet. In our case, I'm the Canadian wife of a dual Canadian/US citizen. His career is taking him to the US for the next 1-2 years. My pay is insignificant compared to his, so it only matters that I can be in the country, not that I can work. After his job ends, we intend to return to Canada to live on a permanent basis, but we have enough ties in the US that we don't want to rule out the possibility of ever spending time there again in the future. If we go the visitor route, we'll still be separated at least half the year and I doubt I'd be granted entry anyway. If we go the immigration route, my understanding is that the wait times are so long the job might be over by the time i got a green card. We don't intend to stay long enough for me to get citizenship and so I'd have to surrender the GC when we left. I don't think a re-entry permit would be an option because I'd be on a CR-1 (we've been married 14 months). But it looks like having had a green card at one point will make future visits to the US will a much bigger hassle, because I will forever be viewed with suspicion of intending to immigrate again. If your information or experience differs, I would love to hear about it! Bet of luck to you and your wife

Sounds like you have a handle on the situation, except that by the time you would receive a spouse visa, you'll be married more than two years, so it would be IR1 and a 10 year unconditional resident status and card. This is a place where the K3 visa is perfect. There's just no telling whether it will be possible to obtain one.

[aaron2020 11,651]

To live in the US for a year, your wife will need a green card.

You can file in London for an immigrant visa.

Before leaving to return to the UK, she can apply for a Re-entry visa. This allows her to be outside the US for up to 2 years without losing her green card.

She must return to the US to live before the Re-entry permit expires.

If she leaves without a Re-entry permit or let it expire, she will be deemed to have abandoned her green card status. She would need a new immigration visa.

Also, there is a financial requirement for her to immigrate. Have you been filing US tax returns on your UK income as required by US law?