Moving to US with US spouse

B

bloke

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I've been offered a job in the US and was wondering the best way to proceed. I lived in the US previously on an E-3 visa and got married to a US citizen, but we both moved to Australia shortly after the wedding. We've been married for a little over a year now.

My thoughts are that it would be easier to get a temporary visa now, because the processing time would be shorter and my wife would not need to move back to the US to sponsor me. Would it be possible for me to get an E3 visa although I am married to a US citizen? Would I be better off applying for a H1-B? Would there be any complications with applying for a green card once I am in the US?

Thanks for your help!
 
I assume you don't have the luxury of waiting 6-12 months to start that US job, so you'll have to apply for a temporary visa. The H1B cap is almost full, so unless your employer has already started the process or your employer is quota-exempt, H1B is not feasible. So it looks like you'll be forced to take the E3 route.

E3 has a weak version of dual intent, so you shouldn't have a problem applying for a GC in the US while on E3 status, as long as you don't make it look too blatant by applying for it rapidly after you enter the US. Given that you've been married for over a year and will be working in the US legally, it would make sense to delay the GC application so that your GC interview will be on or after the 2-year wedding anniversary. That would enable you to directly get the 10-year green card instead of the conditional 2 year card. So file the I-485 not earlier than 2 months before the anniversary. Or delay the GC application much longer if you're not certain that you want to live in the US permanently. Having a green card obligates you to spend enough time in the US to avoid losing it.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Thanks for your fast reply. I've started looking at the L-1 visa option, as I am currently working for the company that offered me the position. Does anyone know if the L-1 visa would take longer to process than an E-3?
 
L-1 would probably be faster if the employer has successfully filed for other L-1 visas in the recent past. L-1 has explicit dual intent, so you legitimately could file the green card paperwork the same day you arrive in the US with the L-1 (but as I mentioned above, it's probably better to wait until you approach the 2-year wedding anniversary).
 
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