UK to US move?

[DollOnAMusicBox]

I'm almost certain that I'm jumping the gun. But I was just wondering what the timeline looks like for a UK to USA move. And I'd rather be early than too late.

My SO will *hopefully* be moving here in 2013. That's the plan as of right now. Its been the plan for our whole relationship. We don't have an exact date yet but he's trying to do everything he can think to do to build himself up for a great visa application. He's planning on visiting the embassy for information later in the year. If there is anyone who's done this move or their SO has...do you have any advice for us? Are there any suggestions about what he/we/I should look forward to? Things to look out for? Things we should know to do WAY in advance as opposed to last minute? Should he be looking for a job before he moves? Or build up a savings so that he can look once he's here? Think of it as "If I were to do it again, I'd like to know...."

For someone in an international LDR...I guess I'm pretty clueless >.<

[ChibiFelicia]

I hear ya! My SO and i are in the same boat. Im hoping to move to the states late 2013/ early 2014.

You should check out visajourney.com. It's a really helpful website and i've been on there for over a year now. My SO and i are gonna start the CR1 application (marriage visa) late 2012 and it'll take around 7-9 months but we'll just say it'll take a year what with the delays that could happen etc. What type of visa is your SO thinking of applying for? Not knowing what kind of visa you're going for kind of makes it hard to say what you need to prepare in advance.

The job situation depends on what kind of visa you're going to apply for. If you apply for the fiance visa, he cant work until he has a EAD (i think thats what it's called) which i think is about 90 days. The spousal visa you can work straight away. And work visa, i only know about the nursing work permits, hope someone more knowledgeable can help ya out.

---------- Post added at 08:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:25 AM ----------

I hear ya! My SO and i are in the same boat. Im hoping to move to the states late 2013/ early 2014.

You should check out visajourney.com. It's a really helpful website and i've been on there for over a year now. My SO and i are gonna start the CR1 application (marriage visa) late 2012 and it'll take around 7-9 months but we'll just say it'll take a year what with the delays that could happen etc. What type of visa is your SO thinking of applying for? Not knowing what kind of visa you're going for kind of makes it hard to say what you need to prepare in advance.

The job situation depends on what kind of visa you're going to apply for. If you apply for the fiance visa, he cant work until he has a EAD (i think thats what it's called) which i think is about 90 days. The spousal visa you can work straight away. And work visa, i only know about the nursing work permits, hope someone more knowledgeable can help ya out.

[mllebamako]

I agree with ChibiFelicia that it's good to give yourselves about a year to do it all. Fiance and spousal visas take anywhere from 5-9 months but it could be more if you get requests for more evidence, etc. My advice to you, is take some time to learn about all the requirements so that you guys can slowly start gathering information. Visajourney will be your visa-bible, that site is soooooo useful with their guides, timelines, and forums.
You also need to figure out which type of visa is best for you guys. We had gotten the K-1 (fiance) visa all ready to send in and then life happened, plans changed, I moved back to him and we decided we're happy here for a few more years. Now, we'll probably be looking at the CR1 down the road.

As for money, it's a great idea to start saving now! Both of you! An international move is really expensive. You should make a list of projected costs (visa, plane tickets, housing costs, etc) and if possible, it would be best for you guys to save up enough so that he can live for several (or more) months without work. Depending on what field he's in and his visa type, he can try to start looking from abroad but probably his most serious searching will be done in country.

[lucybelle]

The ladies above me have given some great advice. There is actually a page on visajourney which lays out the pros and cons of all the different visas coming into the USA. It was really helpful for me. I think I've decided it's best for us to go with a CR-1 (spouse) visa. But I haven't discussed this with my SO yet... key step, right?

Anyways, just want to add on the job front- before I moved to CR I looked and looked for jobs. I probably applied to 20 schools before coming down here, only got an interview with one, and didn't get the job. Once I got here, I again applied to the same 20 schools and heard back from about 7 of them and got interviews with all 7 of them. I also got to do a bit of networking. I talked to people I met in the park and one lady told me about a school I hadn't heard of yet. Turns out this was the school where I accepted a job. All this rambling means, yes, he can look for jobs from abroad. And it's a really good idea to because then he can get a feel of what types of jobs are out there. But employers like to interview in person. And he's more likely to land a job in person. He should save up 4-5 months worth of living expenses to live on with the possibility of not finding a job until 5 months in. It'll be 5 months for me before I start my job. And I know snow_girl was having a hard time finding stuff too. Better safe than sorry.

[pink elephant]

Hey,

My sigoth (well, now husband, woohoo!) is from Scotland and we applied for the K1 fiance visa for him in November 2010. Our petition was approved, then he interviewed with the US Embassy in London in August 2011, and arrived here October 2011. We got married here in the US in November 2011 (yay!) but due to a string of complicated and unfortunate circumstances, however, we have both decided to move to the UK, despite our original intentions to remain in the US. Oh, and ours took longer because he was working full-time in the UK and had to worry about taking time off to do tasks involved with completing his part for the K1 visa.

Here's a pretty accurate timeline on how long things take: https://www.visajourney.com/content/k1flow
This was our timeline: https://members.lovingfromadistance....phant-timeline

Now, on to your questions..

If there is anyone who's done this move or their SO has...do you have any advice for us?

• For the K1: Gather as many photos, documents, or supporting evidence you have that you have met in person within two years before you apply for the K1 visa petition.
• For the K1: Have your documents totally organized when you send in your petition application. And make copies of EVERYTHING! (So glad I did this! Nothing bad happened, and everything we had was approved and went smooth sailing.)
• SAVE LOTS OF MONEY. The application is quite pricey! On top of the petition application fee, there will be fees on your SO's part where they will have to travel to London, have a medical exam, background check, passport sized photos, etc..
• Start looking into: how your SO will move their belongings, linking bank accounts between US and UK, etc..

For my SO, he was actually quite good on managing to pack only what he really wanted to bring over -- just two suitcases!

Are there any suggestions about what he/we/I should look forward to? Things to look out for? Things we should know to do WAY in advance as opposed to last minute?

SAVE MONEY. Seriously. After my SO touched ground, what we immediately had to pay for were applying for our marriage certificate to get married, then a judge (we didn't want an overly expensive wedding), and reviewed our options for changing his status from his fiance visa to permanent resident (to get a green card). Be aware that it costs well over $1000 in order for your SO to permanently remain in the USA. This is as of November 2011, by the way..

Should he be looking for a job before he moves? Or build up a savings so that he can look once he's here? Think of it as "If I were to do it again, I'd like to know...."

Unfortunately, until your SO can receive a green card, they cannot work. But, we did manage to get my SO a social security number though, and after you get an SSN you can work provided you send in an application for permission -- but it takes the same amount of time to wait for approval as if you were to apply for a green card. Definitely, save, save, save.

My SO also volunteered for some organizations related to his field in order to start building experience here in the states as well as to gain job and character references, and to pass the time before (we were about to) apply for his green card.

It's kind of hard to really give too much advice on this since every situation is different, but whatever you decide to do, I wish you both the best of luck and hope that it all goes well. Both of us have had the experience of moving to different countries before, so if you'd like to talk things out, feel free to message me~ Hope any of this helps..

-pink elephant

[mllebamako]

Unfortunately, until your SO can receive a green card, they cannot work. But, we did manage to get my SO a social security number though, and after you get an SSN you can work provided you send in an application for permission -- but it takes the same amount of time to wait for approval as if you were to apply for a green card. Definitely, save, save, save.

Great advice pink elephant! But I just wanted to point out that your SO *can* work before getting a green card. She/He will need to get an EAD to work (Employment Authorization Document) and that is something most people apply for when they are applying for AOS (adjustment of status--within the 90 day period). The EAD could take a few weeks up to a few months so it's best to be prepared with a lot of savings. Whereas the green card will take longer, it seems around 4+ months. The EAD is a temporary solution to working while waiting for your the green card.
Source links: here, here, and here.

[ChibiFelicia]

One of the reasons my SO and I are waiting till we get married to apply for the CR1 is so i can work as soon as i get there. Although im going to have to get the NCLEX (the nursing exam) done etc and thats gonna cost a fair bit too : (. It's why we're planning on saving for at least a year before i head to the USA. You never know..im so worried about nursing jobs in Cali state im thinking about going to a different state where they actually pay you to go there to be a nurse lol - im going to have to do a lot more research regarding this since i looked middle of last year and gah i wish my qualification just straight transferred to the states : (

I have to say though im a little sad that we wont be together as soon as we get married but meh it's all good. Whats a year or two more of being apart when we will eventually spend the rest of our lives together? (it's what i keep telling myself....still sucks though ) We wont be having the wedding i imagined either..a lil court house wedding and a proper wedding a couple of years later when i get to the US. Ah well.

[DollOnAMusicBox]

Thanks for the advice guys! Im not used to poating in this section so I totally forgot I had >.< haha I guess Im not jumping the gun so much then.

My SO is looking into a specialized worker visa...but hes very nervous about it. He told me that he doesnt want to consider engagment or marriage until hes certain he wont be deported/denied. Hes quite old fashioned....he also has said that he will begin looking into the process after we go to Florida together. He plans to go to the Embassy in London to find information...

A friend of mine (who is in law school) suggested hiring an immigration lawyer...Im skeptical that shes jus promoting lawyers cuz shes training to be one...(Im a bad friend huh?). Do you guys have thoughts on this? I feel like its going to be expensive enough as it is...This friend is also encouraging us to look into a student visa so that be gets a chance tonsee if hes happy here and can get networked in his field here by going to school for his masters locally...We're not thrilled about that decision because that would definately mean leaving the country again and just...delaying this whole final CD process...no?

I like the idea of him looking for/applying for jobs before and again once hes here...maybe its a sort of advantage to get your name somewhere twice haha.

[Haley53]

I don't have much experience in this department so might not be able to answer your questions, but regarding the lawyer, to me that has always seemed like an unnecessary expense, and I have heard the same from quite a few people as well. Thoroughly doing your research, talking to people who have been through the process, going over the forms carefully to make sure you've included/understand everything, etc. is going to cost more time-wise but it will save a lot more money-wise.

[mllebamako]

I think if you have an uncomplicated case and you feel comfortable researching yourself, you don't need a lawyer. But if it makes you feel better you can do what I did: My SO has a REALLY complicated immigration case (long story) so I did loads of research, spent a quite large chunk of time getting really familiar with the visa and the exceptions/obstacles that would apply to him. And then I paid about $100 (or was it 150) dollars to have one consultation with a lawyer to verify my work.
In the end, it was pretty much a waste of that money. The lawyer wasn't super helpful and he basically told me things I already knew. But whatever, I guess it made me feel better to hear it from a professional.

[lucybelle]

My SO is looking into a specialized worker visa...but hes very nervous about it. He told me that he doesnt want to consider engagment or marriage until hes certain he wont be deported/denied. Hes quite old fashioned....he also has said that he will begin looking into the process after we go to Florida together. He plans to go to the Embassy in London to find information...

I like the idea of him looking for/applying for jobs before and again once hes here...maybe its a sort of advantage to get your name somewhere twice haha.

Getting a worker's visa is HARD! Here's a post I recently started on visa journey about my SO getting a worker visa in the States. He is a mechanical engineer with over 10 years experience with a high level position in his current job (though no degree yet). And the general thought is that it would be better for us to be married than to try for a worker visa.

[meo]

Reading all of this is very helpful. My SO and I are planning on moving in together eventually.. He's from Canada and I'm here in the states. I know it's hard and it takes time but I have hope reading everyone's story.
Another scary thing is that he has Type 1 Diabetes and thinking about health insurance scares us. It's such a hard road to go down, but we know it's worth it.

[MeganK]

I plan on moving to the uk instead of my SO coming here. would it take less time to get there then it would if he comes here?
we have already been looking into what proof we need, and have a little together, i cant file until im 21 which will be this october... but i was just wondering if it would take less time going to the uk?

[ChibiFelicia]

I dont know for sure as i have never looked that up. I have heard however from various posters that its a shorter time going from US to UK. Im going UK to US on a spousal visa so thats gonna take a while : (

[Tooki]

I think I would end up moving to her before she would move to me.

I will finish my university studies before she will. That said, it is easier for her to move to Australia and live with me as a temporary resident whilst I work full-time.