Moving to the US

[jess24x8]

Hi all,

So me and my partner have decided we want to move to America in the next 4 years, that gives us enough time to pay everything off, save enough money and get everything sorted and ready.

We just don't know where to start!! Has anyone done this or know someone that did? We have his dad to support us as he lives there but that was so long ago when he moved there.

What do we need? Where do we start?

TIA

You need a visa to work in the USA.

Whereabouts are you planning on moving to exactly?

You can’t just move to the USA. If your partner’s dad is a citizen or permanent resident he will be able to petition for your partner (not you) to come as his child but, since they prioritize minor children, spouses, fiancés etc, your adult partner could be years on the waiting list for the petition to be approved and the waiting lists vary depending on which state he’s moving to. Once it is approved partner will be invited to apply for a visa interview at the embassy there, another wait of several months to get a spot.

Once the visa is approved your partner (not you) will be allowed to travel to the USA but will then have to apply for a social security number, work permit and get in line for the green card process. Your partner’s father as sponsor will have to agree to provide medical insurance and support for him for at least 7 years if necessary because your partner won’t be eligible for benefits until he’s accrued enough social security credits from working.
And what will your status be while all this is going on? Well, what it is now, because your partner won’t be able to apply for you to come (as spouse or fiancée) until they have their own green card, ie his dad can’t sponsor you because you’re not related to him.

Yeah, you can’t just show up and expect to live there full-time. You would need a work visa. Also, consider the health care system in the US. Although it can be great quality, it’s expensive. And there is relatively little in the way of social welfare.

It is very difficult to move to the USA. Unless you have a company that is sponsoring you to move or you're going to open a business there to employ so many American citizens - you have to have so much money in the bank etc. And even then, that's not the right to a visa.

Work visas are very hard to get unless you’re in a shortage occupation, ie they need people with your specific qualifications. Your partner’s dad could sponsor your partner but it would be a long time before he gets his own green card and you can join him. Personally I wouldn’t go - healthcare is dependent on your job and you get virtually no holidays off work.

The US embassy in the UK has all of the details here:

uk.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/

As Speck discussed, you're most likely path to success would be to apply for family immigrant status, assuming his dad is a citizen or legal resident:

uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/

I'm a Yank (New Yorker), happy to answer any questions I can.

you get virtually no holidays off work.

That's a bit of a myth. I get 20 days paid holiday and 11 bank holidays per year, and that's pretty standard once you're established in a salaried position. If you work part time you will only get paid when you work. If you're just starting out in most jobs you'll get 10 days holiday, then 15 at five years.

Are you US citizens or green card holders? If not, then you're going to need work visas in order to move to the US - I'm afraid that his dad living there isn't enough on it's own. I would start by having a good look at the US embassy website (listed above) and see what your options might be. What do you do as jobs? Some professions are highly in demand in the US (medics for instance), so if you're doctors/nurses/whatever you should be able to get work visas fairly easily. Don't assume you can just up and move though, because you want to. The US is actually pretty tricky to get into these days unless you have the right paperwork.

I get 20 days paid holiday and 11 bank holidays per year, and that's pretty standard once you're established in a salaried position
Most U.K. workers get 30-40 days paid holiday, but you don’t have to be “established” in your career for 10-20 years to get that. Absolutely everyone gets the legal minimum of 28 days regardless of their position or how long they’ve worked. The US has no legal minimum - to start with your holiday entitlement is 0 days and even after a couple of years it can be as little as 10-12 days. No thanks!

The lack of holiday is very hard to get your head around if you're used to the UK system. When I was working there I had to negotiate 30 days per year (because I needed some of it just to come home and see my family and if I'd only had 10 days to start with - the standard - that would've been my whole allowance for the year gone!).