US immigration / UK resident

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adamspring

Registered Users (C)
Hi
I'm a UK citizen looking to move to and work in the US on a permanent basis. I have a degree in Archaeology and MA in Landscape Archaeology. I have a specialism in geophysics, which is a skill that has great potential in the US but not widely adopted yet.
I have looked into applying for work in the US but do not have a social security number (obviously). I would be lying if i said the visa system did not confuse the hell out of me.
I am aware i would need a sponser if it is work related but am not sure the best way to go about it. I have emailed large numbers of archaeology related organisations across the US but have only got back a few responses.

I am under 26 and single, so i am not worried about partner's rights to work etc.

Any advice would be gratefully received.
Best
Adam
 
The options....

Hi,

Well, as far as I'm aware you have a number of options - none of them great though.

1. You can contact a company like www.h1base.com and see if they can find you a company willing to sponsor you with an h1. However, there are none available until april 2006 as the cap has been reached. There is talk of some additiona H's being made available pending senate approval. Even if they were, H's take 6 months to be granted, so you'd apply for a job/sponsor and as things stand today, you'd have to wait until april before you could apply for an H1B.

2. You can start your own company by investing in your own business or starting another one. here, there should be 'substantial' active investment. What substantial means really depends on the business. Som Nail Salon places have been successful with an E2 on <20,000 investment. A restaurant business would need nearer 200,000 but it all depends. An archeaology /geophysics company would need some significant investment but you might have.


3. Work for a UK company for 12 months and then apply for an L1 - assuming the parent foreign entity (i.e. UK company) had or was starting a U.S. subsidy that made sense fo ryou to be recurited too.

Assuming you don't go down the National Interest route, or are not an internationally aclaimed artist or athelete and are not seeking asylum from the Blair government and cold winter, that's it for you. There are no other options. period

You can of course get a b1/b2 business or visitors visa while you are waiting of course - but you cannot earn money on these visas.


Kind regards
Ralph 100
 
..or possible one other option...

.. you might consider an F (student) visa for a qualifying course of study.

.. or marry somebody with american citizenship for a K visa...

ok, now that really is it - at least as far as I'm aware.

Anybody got other ideas?
 
You may also be able to obtain a J-1 visa as a manager trainee in your field of study. You would still need a related U.S. company that is willing to sponsor you. However, the requirements are much less stringent than the H-1B (which requires prevailing wages to be paid). The J-1 visa is only good for 18 months and cannot be renewed. Many of my clients prefer to go this route even if they have a degree in order to maximize their time. (info@thevisaexpert.com)
 
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