Applying for Jobs before Entry

[schatzi_sugoi 3]

I'm waiting for my interview letter for my F2B visa. I have not resigned from my current job and don't plan to until I have my immigrant visa issues (hopefully). I am contracted to a one month notice period at my workplace but I plan on already applying for jobs immediately. Has anyone have experience on this before?

 

I'm curious about a few things...

1. At what point do you disclose to the potential employer that you are immigrating? Do you mention it in your cover letter?

2. Do you mention that you are still in your home country and would be in the US at X date? I work in IT so most of the interviews are done via Skype anyway and I can easily take interviews during a convenient time for them. My US address will be my mom's address and I can use Google Voice to get a US number.

 

And a more in general question, how do you handle references that are on the other side of the world? Are employers in the US receptive to references from outside the US? I have worked with US based clients but only minimally so I don't know if they'd be comfortable in giving me a reference.

[JFH 12,189]

I applied for and was offered my current job before I got here. I was upfront with the whole situation. Not a problem for the employer at all. I was interviewed over Skype and also completed some online assessments that they asked me to do. No need for Google Voice numbers to “hide” your location. Just be honest - you are immigrating legally. Any employer that doesn’t understand that concept probably shouldn’t be on your short-list of potentials.