Hello all. I am a male Singaporean national, 34 years of age, looking to live and work in the USA. I have experience in a variety of fields, including translation, voice acting, singing,
teaching, writing and editing, though I do not have a degree. I speak six languages to varying degrees of proficiency - English is my mother tongue, followed by Japanese (effectively
bilingual) Chinese (fair) and a little bit of Malay, Hokkien and Italian.
My budget is hard to quantify, please read further for more information.
I have done some research on my current situation and I feel that the H1NB, E1 and E2 visas would suit me the best as means of expatriation.
The chief reason for this is that I have a family member who is looking to expand his business into the USA and would like me to assist him in his endeavor. As such, he is willing to
help me out to some degree on the visa side of things. I was looking to see what kind of advice the people here could offer on this subject.
This is going to be kind of long, so please bear with me!
The questions I have as are follows :
H1NB Visa -
a) Do I absolutely require a degree for this visa to be granted? I do not have one.
b) Can my friend's company sponsor me for this visa? I would be a highly-skilled employee working for him, in this case.
c) As I understand it, the visa application may be more successful if the company has been running for some time, and/or if it has
a number of people already in its employ. Is this true?
d) Do I need to be employed by his company for a certain duration before I may apply for the visa?
E1 and E2 Visas -
a) Does the company already need to be up and running for the visa application to be processed?
b) I believe the exact wording for the E1 visa is "substantial trade is required." Is there a ballpark figure, or is it for the visa official to determine?
c) Which visa would be better to apply for - the E1 or E2? I have some leeway in this - the company could be incorporated as a new entity in the States, or as a subsidiary of an existing
one in Singapore. I understand that the E1 is primarily for trade, whereas the E2 is for investment. Which would be the better option?
This may be a bit premature to ask, but since it is relevant to the topic...which of these visas would enable me to seek residency in the USA? As I understand it, all the visas I am
currently looking at allow dual intent, but it seems that the E2 and E1 visas have greater difficulty than the H1NB. Is this true?
I am planning to contact an immigration lawyer for a phone conversation over the next few weeks, but I am generally a believer in gathering as much information as possible, and as such
have decided to post here as well.
Thanks for reading, and have a great day!
teaching, writing and editing, though I do not have a degree. I speak six languages to varying degrees of proficiency - English is my mother tongue, followed by Japanese (effectively
bilingual) Chinese (fair) and a little bit of Malay, Hokkien and Italian.
My budget is hard to quantify, please read further for more information.
I have done some research on my current situation and I feel that the H1NB, E1 and E2 visas would suit me the best as means of expatriation.
The chief reason for this is that I have a family member who is looking to expand his business into the USA and would like me to assist him in his endeavor. As such, he is willing to
help me out to some degree on the visa side of things. I was looking to see what kind of advice the people here could offer on this subject.
This is going to be kind of long, so please bear with me!
The questions I have as are follows :
H1NB Visa -
a) Do I absolutely require a degree for this visa to be granted? I do not have one.
b) Can my friend's company sponsor me for this visa? I would be a highly-skilled employee working for him, in this case.
c) As I understand it, the visa application may be more successful if the company has been running for some time, and/or if it has
a number of people already in its employ. Is this true?
d) Do I need to be employed by his company for a certain duration before I may apply for the visa?
E1 and E2 Visas -
a) Does the company already need to be up and running for the visa application to be processed?
b) I believe the exact wording for the E1 visa is "substantial trade is required." Is there a ballpark figure, or is it for the visa official to determine?
c) Which visa would be better to apply for - the E1 or E2? I have some leeway in this - the company could be incorporated as a new entity in the States, or as a subsidiary of an existing
one in Singapore. I understand that the E1 is primarily for trade, whereas the E2 is for investment. Which would be the better option?
This may be a bit premature to ask, but since it is relevant to the topic...which of these visas would enable me to seek residency in the USA? As I understand it, all the visas I am
currently looking at allow dual intent, but it seems that the E2 and E1 visas have greater difficulty than the H1NB. Is this true?
I am planning to contact an immigration lawyer for a phone conversation over the next few weeks, but I am generally a believer in gathering as much information as possible, and as such
have decided to post here as well.
Thanks for reading, and have a great day!