want to improve my English, but don't want to pay for American College

[vchampea]

This post is on behalf of my friend. She wants to come to America to improve her English. She is from Thailand. She already has a degree from a Thai university. She goes to an English language school in Bangkok when she has the time. I told her she could come to America to stay with my family if she wants an opportunity to improve her English. Her English is fluent and would naturally improve just by living in an English speaking environment. I don't think a formal English language program is necessary for her. Besides, if she wanted to get help in English while she was in America she's got me and my whole family to help her. There are also several community centers that offer free English lessons.

So my question is, is there any kind of visa that would allow her to stay in America for an extended period of time while improving her English on her own? American college is expensive, especially for someone coming from Thailand. It seems wasteful for her to attend a school that will give her little educational value. The only benefit of going to a school would be the student visa she would get. There must be some other way, right?

[ravi_niu]

Ask her to marry an American, she can get English lessons for free. There are no visas and rightly so.

[vchampea]

Ok, that's not really the answer I wanted, but it got me thinking. I didn't mention that she is more than a friend, because I didn't want an answer like the one you gave me. Maybe marriage would be a good solution. So here's my new question. I'm in Thailand right now, if we got married here in Thailand, would that mean I could just bring her to the US without going through the long marriage visa process? My brother just got married to a Chinese woman. It took well over 6 months to get the marriage visa processed so she could come to the US. My brother stayed in the US while he finished his degree, while his fiancee stayed in China waiting for the visa. If we had to go through the marriage visa process, we could do it. I'm in Thailand with this woman right now so I get to see her as much as I want. But I know my financial situation will require me to go back to the US soon, and we would like to go to the US together. So we're trying our best to come up with a plan. Any advice?

[elcupacabras]

If you get married to her while you are in Thailand then you will need to petition for a CR1 spousal visa for her if you want to bring her to the US (just like your brother). You can't just bring her to the US with you as she needs to enter with the appropriate visa in her passport.

Alternatively, you could apply for a fiance visa for her and then marry her once she enters the US with the visa (though this roughly takes the same amount of time to process as the spousal visa).

[Concerned4us]

She could be an Au Pair - provide childcare for an American family in return for housing and a small salary. Google it and if interested, look for a reputable agency to place with family.

[vchampea]

Ok, I got an idea. I'm going to going back to America soon and I plan on starting a business filming weddings. My friend is a editor and graphic designer so I could really use her help. Is it possible to get a visa for her to help me start this business? Marriage is not really something we want to do.