Permanent visa info, help?

[Sammil]

So my boyfriend and I met online several years ago thru video games, recently met in person and we want to take our relationship further. He's from the UK and i am from the states. We hit it off amazingly, my brothers and son really like him which is huge for me.
So the next step that i can see would be to move one of us to another country - we are aiming at him coming here to the states but with all the political and racial tension, me moving there with my son is not out of the question.

I have a million questions on visa's and official websites are just so confusing so i'm looking for someone to chat with that has gotten a partner visa or a fiance visa or any kind of permanent visa that would be willing to 'dumb it down' for me. I'm not stupid by any means, i just have a very short attention span so holding in information without explanation is difficult.

I have the basics of what is required, i just need to know where to even start and what to do in what order....

Sorry, i know this is really weird to ask on a literotica website, but i don't really know of any other place that has such a diverse following from all over the world.

Thanks!

 

[silverwhisper]

i work with a lot of work authorizations in the US.

your bf is gonna need to work at some point while he's in the US. fortunately, the UK is one of the easier nations from which he might try to manage getting a work authorization.

i work with this kind of thing all day long as a recruiter so i'm pretty knowledgeable about this stuff, at least on the US side. that said: never accept the work of some random online stranger. vet this shit with your own research for your own sake and for his.

that enormous caveat aside...broadly speaking, he can be self-supporting in the US if he obtains an employment authorization document (EAD).

(in theory, you guys could just get married but that seems incredibly rash. it is however the fastest way to do this. there are costs involved in filing for a green card above & beyond the wedding-related stuff. however, i'm assuming you're both rational people who understand that marriage isn't something into which you enter on a whim. the fact that you're talking about how your family views him is good news in that respect.)

1) the fastest and easiest way is he decides to further his education at an accredited institution of higher education in the US. when he does this, he can obtain a F1 or M1 visa through USCIS. this is auto-granted once the appropriate paperwork is filed. this authorization allows him to work on the campus of the school only. depending upon what kind of program he enrolls in at the school in question, a few other things will happen. typically, such students then move forward to the CPT, then OPT work authorizations. you can learn more about this stuff here.

2) he could apply for a H1B visa. there is a lottery by which these are awarded. the problem is that anyone who's likely to hit that lottery has already submitted their paperwork: they begin accepting applications for H1Bs april 1 each year. these are awarded beginning in june on a rolling basis. therefore, he's likely missed his window for successfully applying for this work authorization. last year, almost a quarter million people applied for one of the 65,000 available spots.

now, i don't know anything about your situation, so i'm sure there's a really good reason the thrust of your question was his coming here rather than the reverse. in the latter case i'd be concerned about possible visitation or other parental issues if your son's father is still in the picture.

hope this has been helpful!

ed

 

[Sammil]

So in other words i should be looking at information for green cards, not visas?

 

[silverwhisper]

well...a green card signals that he wants to begin the immigration process, and right now, that seems like a big investment for both of you.

only you know what is more suitable for your situation.

hope that helps.

ed

 

[JGittes]

Hello,

I'm an American expat currently living in the UK and have lived outside the US for the past 10 years. The technical information you received above about immigration into the US looks good from my understanding. There is an additional consideration for green card status for immigration to the US. He will become subject to US income tax on his worldwide income. The US is one of very few countries that require this and until just a few years ago was not really a problem due to the difficulty of data collection and enforcement. But the US has made this a top priority and is able to require foreign banking and taxation institutions to provide data to the US. If one has little wealth and would be earning income only in the US, then it wouldn't be that much of an issue. But if he has any income or wealth outside the US then the extremely arcane US taxation rules can be a real pain in the neck, to put it mildly. I personally know people who have given up either their US citizenship or approved green card status over this issue.

Regarding your immigration to the UK, it is probably about as difficult to obtain a work visa or immigrate into the UK from the US as it would be for your prospective partner in the reverse. In addition to the concern expressed about your child, an additional issue with even marrying is that the UK requires a spouse to have at least 18k Sterling annual income independent of the UK citizen.

My wife is German and did work in the US for a few years around 2005 (when we met). She came to the US on a work visa provided through her employer and arranged by an immigration attorney who specialized in such work. She said it was the most difficult legal process she has been through.

I am in the UK with a visa as the spouse of an EU citizen, and as you might imagine the outcome of the Brexit talks will directly affect our ability to stay here.

Keep in mind that between the US and UK, a citizen of one country can stay in the other country for up to 6 months (I think that is the time limit) without an explicit visa. Of course, you cannot work. And when you enter the country, if you are staying for longer than a few week visit, they may require proof that you have a return ticket and sufficient funds (and insurance) for the projected length of stay.

As was said above, these issues are so complex, and the political times increasingly rather perilous, that I highly recommend obtaining competent legal advice from a specialist before taking any action in either direction.

Regards

 

[Bramblethorn]

Hello,

I'm an American expat currently living in the UK and have lived outside the US for the past 10 years. The technical information you received above about immigration into the US looks good from my understanding. There is an additional consideration for green card status for immigration to the US. He will become subject to US income tax on his worldwide income. The US is one of very few countries that require this and until just a few years ago was not really a problem due to the difficulty of data collection and enforcement. But the US has made this a top priority and is able to require foreign banking and taxation institutions to provide data to the US. If one has little wealth and would be earning income only in the US, then it wouldn't be that much of an issue. But if he has any income or wealth outside the US then the extremely arcane US taxation rules can be a real pain in the neck, to put it mildly. I personally know people who have given up either their US citizenship or approved green card status over this issue.

I'd recommend finding an accountant who specialises in expat tax returns. I live and work in Australia; I have to file a US return every year and also declare my bank accounts etc. but I've never had to pay US taxes.

I don't recall the details (that's what I have an accountant for but I think there's a deduction for time spent out of the USA - which is usually the entire year - and for the tax I've already paid in Australia.

An accountant can also warn about other pitfalls. For instance, my partner and I bought a house and then sold it again a few years later. Because of changes in the exchange rate, that looked like a large profit in US dollars and could have attracted a large and unexpected tax bill; I hadn't even thought about that risk until the accountant pointed it out to me. She charges a couple of hundred dollars a time, but it's worth it for the peace of mind.

 

[Primalex]

Keep in mind that between the US and UK, a citizen of one country can stay in the other country for up to 6 months (I think that is the time limit) without an explicit visa. Of course, you cannot work. And when you enter the country, if you are staying for longer than a few week visit, they may require proof that you have a return ticket and sufficient funds (and insurance) for the projected length of stay.

You are mixing things up.

You can enter without visa for up to 90 days, but need to have a return ticket already though (and ESTA pre-approval). Obviously they cannot do a background check at the airport, which is why the existence of a return ticket is basically mandatory. Especially, as the airline will already check this before you are even allowed to board the plane to the US. (The return ticket does not have to return you to the UK though, any country which does not border the US is fine.)

You can apply for a tourist visa, which allows entry for up to 180 days and in the application process your itention to return and financial details are screened, so you don't need a return ticket when the visa was granted.

 

[Primalex]

I have the basics of what is required, i just need to know where to even start and what to do in what order....

I would start by spending 90 days together in a row and see how it works out.

 

[Sammil]

He is planning on coming back from october to whenever he can.

One thing i'm uncertain of is his ESTA.... Can he stay up to 90 days at a time, or is it 90 days in total?