Hokie97

My indepedent lifestyle. I love my husband, I love our apartment but I feel like a prisoner. I can't drive yet, I am unemployed, I am home alone most of the time, no friends, can't go anywhere.... I just so miss going to work, hanging out with friends, going anywhere I want without feeling bad for having my tired husband to take me each time......

I am so glad that someone else has used the word prisoner. This is exactly how I feel sometimes. My husband has never had a car, and financially we can't afford one. Even a learners permit costs £150.... lessons and the test are out of the question. We are both unemployed at the moment, and you may thing, great, you're home together all day. Not great. He spends his time with his online friends and I am left to aimlessly wander the internet or read. Which I love to do, but not for 5 months straight! Husband has some friends who have nice wives, but we don't have the money for me to be able to go out for drinks or a movie with them. So we're home and I can't spend money and I stress every week about being able to feed the children. It's a voluntary prison, as I LOVE my new family with all my heart. But it's not easy to live like this.

For the ones who feel they lost identity...why dont you just keep your maiden name?

For me it was losing who I was before I moved. An independent woman in a good career. A homeowner. Here, I am unemployed, I have no belongings except what fit in my suitcases. I am a mother to an 11 and 13 year old. On one level I don't mind those things. I LOVE my husband! I want to be with him more than anything. But I have become entirely dependent on him in every regard. He is the only socialization I get, as my family and friends have not been good about helping me stay in touch. I talk to voicemails a lot It's still early days for me yet, and I am trying to remain positive about things, but I have bad days... weeks... you get the picture.

My family, my lifestyle, my identity......I totally underestimated how much I would miss all three.

Yes! The first two I knew would happen, and was a BIT better prepared for. The third, I was overwhelmed with. Also, I had to give up my dog and my cat (I had recently lost another dog and cat to medical problems), and they'd been my constant companions for 10 years. They are with my parents now, whom they've known their whole lives, but I have incredible guilt and sadness about abandoning them. And I get really lonely here, and that is when I miss them the most.

How do I deal with it?! I cry! Only sometimes. But it does help. I try to talk to family and friends on the phone weekly or at least monthly with some. Time zones are a pain, aren't they? At first, I avoided asking about the animals, but after a few good cries with my dad on the phone, I can ask about them, listen to him tell me stories and it is actually comforting to me, though it still hurts.

1,000 is an accurate guess

Application Fee: 355

Medical: 300

Visa Fee: 400

Total: 1055 per person

And DONT buy a one way ticket! The cost sooo much more. Just buy round trip and cancel your return end If you fly through Continental they will actually let you use the canceled portion of your ticket toward a future flight

I've made a note. Will definitely check out Continental when the time comes. Thanks!

The travel fee, is that the fee to the Embassy in London? I assume all four of us have to go to that. What are the medical expenses?

Yes, you (well, the intending immigrants) have to travel to London for the medical & visa interview.

Medical expenses are the fees you have to pay for the medical exam. I believe it is around the 200 pound mark (but don't quote me on that)

All together I think you will be looking at close to US1000 per person ($355 I-130 fee + $400 DS-230 fee + fees for medical exam + travel expenses) so it's good you are planning ahead

Wow. This has been eye-opening. I had been looking in what I thought were the right places online, but apparently not. The upside, I suppose is that after 4+ years of marriage we should not have to work too hard to "prove" we are a real couple like we did to get me here in the UK.

Thank you again for your quick response.

"We are planning on getting my citizenship here,"

How can you get your US citizenship living in Britian?

I think she means her BRITISH citizenship

Yes, I did mean British citizenship. Since we'll be here long enough for it to be possible, it seemed the best/safest route to go, because you never know what will happen in the future, and I don't want to have to go through the whole spouse visa process again.

Veronica, thank you so much. I am glad that I thought to ask. It is so expensive. I wish sometimes I could be more carefree, but there is always one thing or another (money, savings, timelines) playing in my mind. I estimated what I will need to save per month, then rounded up, which will HOPEFULLY cover the cost if it rises over the next few years.

Kaffy, I did not know about that separate immigration visa fee. I will have to look into that, thank you. The travel fee, is that the fee to the Embassy in London? I assume all four of us have to go to that. What are the medical expenses?

Hi. I am currently living in the UK (since March 09) with my husband and his two children. We are planning on getting my citizenship here, and move to the States in about four years. I realize that a lot can change between now and then, but I need to start saving money now for all the fees and everything associated with it.

So, my first question is, do you pay the fee for both my husband and the children, or just my husband when we file? The children will be around 14 and 16 at the time of filing.

A little history, if it helps.. my husband is a widow, so has full custody of the children. They will still be minor children at the time of filing and moving. Also, we have looking into my adopting them after a year (the waiting period here), so then they would be "my children" legally. I did not know if that made a difference in anything. I have read some mixed information about whether adopted children have a right to become automatic US Citizens. Step children have different rules, from what I have gathered from several different websites.

Anyway, and advice or direction you can lead me will be greatly appreciated!

Also, if this needs to be in another area, please feel free to move it. Since it will be a DCF, I put it here. Thanks.

-Jenny

Thank you!

Thank you again. This is a very warm welcome, and a very friendly place to be

Thank you all for the welcome!

Hi. My name is Jenny, and I am a USC living in the UK with my UKC husband. We've been married since February 2009 and I have been here since March 2009.

It was quite an ordeal getting here, and our long term goal is to move to the US in four years. Why four years? Because my husband is a single parent with two children, and when looking at what would be easiest for them, me coming here, to their comfort zone, then moving the US down the line seemed to be best. They are 11 and 13 now. Plus, living here for a few years, we will (hopefully) be able to travel a bit to places that we won't be able to financialy travel to once we move to the States.

I have several questions already, but am still familiarizing myself with the board, and will see if the answers are already here before posting. I am a member of UK-Yankee, and that has been an incredible help with getting this far, so I am excited to have found a board for help getting back.