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I am a Brit (living in England) who met an American girl whilst she was teaching in Germany.
She has now moved back home to Chicago and I am looking to join her, permanently. We want to get married.

There are plenty of sites offering information but we would love to hear from any couples who found themselves in similar circumstances with ANY advice, however seemingly trivial.

Work is another factor. I am an Engineering graduate and would love to hear from anyone with knowledge in this area too.

Oh gosh - it will be a nightmare; to say the least. Immigrating to the US will take time, money and persistance. There is like a priority scheme: Those that are family members have first priority; then others who will do jobs that Americans are not as keen to do; and at the bottom those from other westernized countries, who are considered taking the job of an American. In other words, get married first, then shell out some serious dough for an immigration lawyer to file your papers, etc. - it is almost impossible to get your permanent residency status otherwise.

I've immigrated 25 years ago, when it was considered to be much easier than today. Let me tell you, you really got to love someone, and they have to love you to endure what's in store for you.

What kind of engineer are you?

quote:

Originally posted by Marisa:
What kind of engineer are you?

'Cause if you're the right kind, then Marisa will marry you and get you a visa.

Africaholic, thank you.
She's definitely worth it (funny, smart, beautiful - the list goes on) and we're both madly in love with each other
We know this is going to be a tough test but we figure if we can make it through this we'll really have something worth holding on to.
Do you know if where we get married may influence any later decisions? It's kind of an irrelevant question as it will be in her church in Chicago but this is the kind of stuff I'm looking to find out.
From what you wrote, what concerns me the most is your talk of 'serious' money (any idea how much for an immigration lawyer, ball park figure?). Time, persistence, patience - these are all things we have in abundance whereas neither of us have any money right now.

Marisa, I've a BEng in Electrical & Electronic Engineering. If I'm honest, I didn't really like my course too much so would ideally look to use my degree in some other field. Something like teaching maths (but not that, I've decided).

Could I speak in any more riddles?

Thank you for your advice and thoughts so far. Anyone with anything else to contribute we'd really appreciate it.

quote:

Originally posted by Not the First Continental Op:
'Cause if you're the right kind, then Marisa will marry you and get you a visa.

lol! um...no. I'm already married to an engineer.

I asked because my husband works for ARM, a company based out of Cambridge, UK. There are tons of Brits on long term visas down here (Austin) that work in ARMs chip design center (all EE's). They originally worked for the Cambridge office, then got transferred over. Do you know if there are any UK based companies that have satellite offices in Chicago that you could transfer to? Even if you don't want to do that type of work, if could get you into the country until you figure everything else out.

But if you are interested in the teaching bit, you could check out the schools and unis to see if there are any openings. Another area is getting into a research lab at a uni. It'll be harder not having a visa, but you never know. I have a Russian friend who has been sponsored by a few unis doing research work (Chemistry, though).

You can Teach Maths? Thats an opening. If you marry someone, you get your green card eventually if you behave, and then your job search can begin in earnest. Theres always a demand for substitute teachers, and I bet you can start there. It's definitely going to be an experience in Chicago.

Or you could go to school for a teaching degree, which you should get in two years, learning how things work AND getting yourself a full career in teaching, which can be rewarding.

Serious money... I don't have any current figures, but 25 years ago it was $3,500 in San Jose, California; and that didn't cover any filing, recording, finger printing, etc. fees.

I suggest your girlfriend will contact an attorney specializing in immigration law. Most offer a free 30-minute consultation. Have all the questions you might have ready, including whether it matters where you get married.

Best of luck!

Don't panic -- getting your green card shouldn't be a problem. It will take time and money, though. (I'm a US citizen currently going through the process with my UK husband.)

First -- where you get married absolutely matters!!!

If you plan to get married in Chicago, you have a few options:

1) File for a K1 fiance visa. (About 6-9 months, but check.) You will probably be allowed to visit the US during this time, but no guarantees. Once you get the K1 visa you enter the states and have to get married w/in 3 months of entry. Then you apply for adjustment of status (AOS). Which will take 3 - 9 months-ish. If you do everything correctly, you should be able to work fairly quickly. You will not be allowed to leave the US until you either have you green cared (legal permanent residency) approved or advanced parole (about 2 - 3 months after applying for AOS).

2) Enter the US on the Visa Waiver Program (assuming you are eligible). Get married. Return to England and apply for a green card via the CR-1 process or the K-3 process -- it would take a while to explain the differences and I'm not all that familiar, so I won't to into it much here. The CR-1 and/or K-3 process would probably be about 6-12 months. Again you probably could visit the US during this time, but maybe not.

3) WARNING -- THIS IS ILLEGAL! Enter the US on the VWP. Get married. Apply for AOS while in the United States. If you convince the immigration officer that you had no intent to immigrate to the US you'll get your green card and you can both live happily ever after. If he/she believes you intended to immigrate, you have problems, which could include being deported and barred from the US. The AOS process will take 3-12 months. Probably.

4) If your fiance can move to the UK for a while (6 months-ish) I think, you could do direct consular filing with the US Embassy in the UK, which would be quicker than the other options (probably). You'd probably have to get a visa for her to move to the UK, but that is comparatively quick and easy, but also not cheap.

If you get married in the UK, you are pretty much stuck with options 2 or 4.

The cost of an immigration lawyer varies. You (so far) have a very straight forward case and don't even (necessarily) need one. We had one review our paperwork before we turned it in and answer a bunch of questions for us and it was about $550. The more hand-holding you want, the more it will cost. (And if you run into any problems...)

FYI -- My husband was not even my fiance when he entered the US (in late December) and having no intent to immigrate, we were legally able to adjust status (option 3, but legal). We got married in March, filed our paperwork in April, and have our interview Friday. If all goes well, he should have his green card stamped in his passport at the interview.

I highly recommend the Visa Journey webisite (www.visajourney.com), but take what is said with a grain of salt -- the advice is usually, but not always correct. And feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

Good luck,
Jill

I just re-read your post. The immigration process is quite expensive even without a lawyer. It cost just under $1,500 to adjust status. If you get a K1 or K3 you will have those fees on top of the AOS fees.

I'm sure direct consular filing and CR-1 also have large fees, but at least you wouldn't have AOS fees in addition...