Friend moving to USA with US citizen DH and US citizen baby on ESTA

[esta2024]

Asking all british spouses of US citizens.

My friend has decided to go to the USA with her American husband and baby on an ESTA (they were living abroad for years, baby born abroad), live with family while remote working for her current employer (not a US employer and money paid to overseas bank account), and on day 91 apply to adjust her status to a green card.

based on what i have read online, it is likely to succeed despite the fact that she would be overstaying on esta but it seems to have succeeded for many people as they are married to american citizens and in bona fide relationships and its difficult to establish intent to immigrate from the onset (as people say they are just visiting and then 'changed' their minds).

is this true, I can't quite get my head around this. Why doesn't everyone just do this and they wait 1-1.5 years for consular processing? I understand that by doing it this way, you give up all rights to appeal and if it goes wrong, you would be deported and banned from the USA.

She can. I live here and know lots of people that have done exactly that

Yes, but that says, "Foreign nationals who are in the United States and have an immigrant visa immediately available to them, can generally adjust status to permanent resident (green card holder) by filing Form I-485, Application to Adjust Status."

An ESTA is not an immigrant visa. It's literally a visa waiver. So this does not apply to them at all. She'd have to have some kind of visa in process for this to apply, and actually, that website specifically says your I-30 (the kind of visa for immediate family members) has to be approved and current in order to be able to adjust status. The statement about immigrant visa always being available to immediate relatives just means they don't issue a limited number of them each year like they do with some other visas. It does not mean you can just get one whenever you want.

I hope that didn't sound too lecture-y, I know you know. I am just trying to make it clear what's possible and what's not.

You're not wrong. Some people have gotten away with cheating the system. But the other 98% get caught. And deported. Why would anyone with a family and something to lose take that risk?

Yes sorry - also two of the couples im thinking of actually got married in the US so slightly different, apologies

It seems you can. There are also quite a few immigration firms saying you can from googling. The key thing is intention when entering on an ESTA.

Your BIL and SIL need to keep their jobs, their current property and have a place held in whatever childcare provision baby in is (if any) in whatever country they’re currently resident until they do the adjustment, so it looks like they had the intention to go back but after spending 3 months loving living with BIL’s family and Grandma enjoying having her grandchild around, they want to stay! Doesn’t seem to risky as already married with baby so sham marriage not in question.

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/adjustment-of-status

https://rjimmigrationlaw.com/resources/entering-the-u-s-on-esta-and-applying-for-a-green-card-through-marriage/#:~:text=Immediate%20Adjustment%20of%20Status%3A%20If,time%20of%20entry%20is%20crucial.

She got married in the usa but then they went back to the country they lived in. Big difference.

One thing for someone to visit their boyfriend, boyfriend to propose, get married in las vegas and then to plan a life together. Sounds crazy to us cos it takes way longer to get married in a civil registry office here but it can happen.

And then you can legitimately say you had no immigrant intent when you first landed in the usa. Obviously you didnt know he would propose. She is already married with a baby!

Only reason i can think of is if his mum had a terminal illness and then they had to stay on because of that.

They gave up their rental in the home country though! Definitely gave up childcare too

Right, because everyone knows Americans are thick, and no one has ever tried to deceive them in this clever way before.

its her DH's idea and he is american.

Similiar to PP above, I am a US citizen, my husband and children UK citizens. We also emigrated to the US during Covid. We used an immigration lawyer and were advised that the best, the only, way to do it was for me to sponsor my husbabd and the children to get Green Cards/spousal visa. It was very straightforward - the sponsor (me) had to prove I earned over a certain amount, and that I either had a job in the USA or, in my case, that I could do my UK-based job permanently and remotely from the US. It took about 18 months for the paperwork to come through, at which point you have to have medicals and appointments at the US embassy in London, followed by stepping foot in the States within a certain period of time. We were heavily grilled at each stage, especially the day we arrived in the US with packages containing all of the information, which must remain sealed. The children's green cards were then converted to US passports immediately; my husband has to be here for 5 years before he can apply for citizenship.

Your friend's husband should come here alone, get a job, and then sponsor her to come over permanently. She can of course visit him in the USA on an ESTA while waiting on the paperwork.

Do not underestimate the cost of health insurance. If you don't get it with a job, it is very expensive (£500 per person per month). In some states (eg Massachusetts) it is illegal not to have insurance

the DH knows. he has worked in the USA before and his entire family lives in the USA. he is just desperate to get back to the USA and not have to pay rent in the country he lives in. he thinks that as long as he doesn't pay rent, he can save up enough to start life properly in america.

It seems to be they are barely floating in the country they were living in (not UK). Childcare, rent, food, bills, all too much.

He comes from a state with a low COL and his mum lives there. it is one of those states with a declining population, probably due to lack of economic prospects. His mum still works and is willing to be a joint sponsor.

They'll see her coming at the border and will pull her.

I've travelled twice to see male friends in the US on my own and they give you the third degree asking if they were boyfriends etc etc. (They weren't) But the slightest hint things are a bit off and they'll pull her.

The fact she's married to a US citizen and has a baby and only has an ESTA means she's going to get pulled. It going to be bloody obvious what she is doing.

I take it she'll be providing details of her return flight?

And what about where they are staying? She'll have to give details. It's not going to be a hotel now is it?

She a bloody idiot.

I understand, but the USA is VERY expensive. Well, at least where we are on the East Coast it is. Food, tolietries etc are astronomical compared to the UK. House prices too. It's not necessarily a more affordable option! Although salaries tend to be higher...

Can he come on his own, live rent free with his mother, and start the paperwork?

He must have a case of the Dunning Kruger Effect. He has a superficial understanding of US immigration law and thinks he has found a simple way around it.

Pretty high. Cos it'll be fricking obvious at the border.

Her social media will make for interesting reading...

Does she make a habit of doing what her husband says unquestioningly? Is she incapable of checking the legalities for herself seeing as it's her not him that will be screwed if it goes tits up?

If we are talking Dunning-Krueger I'd argue this couple are made for each other.

Perhaps he sees this as a simple way of getting rid of her without the bother and expense of a divorce.

Believe me the place where they currently live is far more expensive relative to salaries. More expensive than London.

To add to your friend’s woes- even if you are fully wfh, you can’t work anywhere in the world without telling your employer.

there may be tax implications for them if you work abroad, so many are reluctant. She could find herself losing her job if her employers find out

You are right to think this has disaster written all over it. So clearly in fact, that it makes me doubt her husbands motives in encouraging her down this route.

Her employer has agreed for her to work remotely.

The DH could just be really foolish/ignorant/oblivious. We had a friend ask to come round in the last few weeks to talk through the idea of living and working in the UK (they are American). The first question I asked was, "what kind of visa are you looking at?" and this was met with sincere confusion. The person genuinely thought you could just move to another country and as long as you could find a job and support yourself, you could just live there.

He was super confused when i told him my DH's father's thai wife can't visit us in the UK as its super hard to get a Visitor visa.

In fact he was even more confused by the fact that being married to a retired uk pensioner goes against her. To ukvi she has a heightened risk of being an overstayer so they wouldn't allow her to visit unless she can show significant assets etc and it would be complicated as dh's dad has never attempted it and came for his mum's funeral alone.

He thinks that just because his wife has pushed a us citizen baby through her vagina, that qualifies her to live in the usa and his mum has a big house and very willing to sponsor them. Its 90%his mums idea i bet. She has this idea that things were the way it was back in 1981 when she immigrated.

They make you apply for change of status from your country of origin now days. I changed mine after getting married many years ago, but they are a lot more strict now.

She can't work for a uk based legal entity out of the country for more than 183 days anyway (Us residencial status or not). This is a uk tax limitation. She would need to work for a US entity and pay local tax after that point. If her employer has no us based legal entity to 'transfer' to then she is stuffed on that front as well.