USA question
- Thread starter StimpE
- Start date
DaRuSsIaMaN
Geek Comrade
I'm pretty sure you will need a Green Card or a work visa (work visa is if you want to live & work here temporarily and then move back, whereas Green Card is a permanent thing). I'm not sure if there's a job requirement for a Green Card... my family had those b4 we became citizens but I forgot lol. I know my dad already did have a job set up and that he applied for the Green Card only after he was invited to take the job. But I'm not sure if you absolutely have to do that... especially for a Canadian citizen. Rules on those things between Canada and USA may be more lax than with all other countries. Kind of like the EU allows citizens from any member country to travel freely among the EU members without any visas... isn't that right, British people here? I'm not sure if I'm correct about that.
Hi,
I am a student in US. As far as I know, in order to live and work here, atleast i need a working visa called H1, meaning my employer would sponser me, saying to the Gov. that he couldn't find adequate person in the US except for me :D
Once you are working on an H1 visa, may right away or after a couple of years later you can apply for a Green Card, which basically means that you are a citizen, with all the rights, but you can't leave the country for more than 6 months. You have to visite the country atleast once every six months if you leave.
After 5-6 years living on the Green Card, then you can get your citizenship.
That's what i know
I am a student in US. As far as I know, in order to live and work here, atleast i need a working visa called H1, meaning my employer would sponser me, saying to the Gov. that he couldn't find adequate person in the US except for me :D
Once you are working on an H1 visa, may right away or after a couple of years later you can apply for a Green Card, which basically means that you are a citizen, with all the rights, but you can't leave the country for more than 6 months. You have to visite the country atleast once every six months if you leave.
After 5-6 years living on the Green Card, then you can get your citizenship.
That's what i know
Karanislove
It's D Grav80 Of Luv
I think...rules are different for differnt areas by US.....Like from India, u have to give many exams like IELTS, TOEFL etc.. nd there are many more partialities u need to fulfill to reach in USA. I would suggest you go nd talk to any Govt. Consultant, he will give you the best advice....
DaRuSsIaMaN
Geek Comrade
Well, no, u could always just sneak in like the Mexicans do... then u don't need anything at all :chk:
But seriously, I'm pretty damn sure that yes, u do need a Green Card to live here permanently. Like 99% sure. Unless u want to keep renewing visas like every several years till the end of your life lol.
Mack said:
Green Card isn't exactly like a citizen; u're not allowed to vote. But that's about it as far as I know. Well, that and what u also mentioned about leaving for more than 6 months (I was unaware of that). Guess that's it. But u can get a green card b4 even getting any visa. You can skip that step completely.
Swansen
The Ninj
Yeah, on that you have to take a test if you pass all other things, like others have said, you'll probably have it a little easier because your so close and all, but you still have to take a test on the US constitution, gov, that sort of thing, which most Americans would fail sadly. Oh yeah here is a example of test questions. Citizen Test Questions
zeus
out of date
My mate just went on holiday and never came back. So did his uncle about 20 years ago. They are both in california. They've got houses, driving licenses businesses the lot.
He was stuffed for a while because his mum went over to see him and accidentally brought his passport back to england. They had to send it back through the post :)
Hes on tour now, last I heard he was in Florida.
I dont suppose thats a good answer. Go to citizens advice or something, they'll tell you where to go.
andy
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=590&c=3&userid=290
stu
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=589&c=3&userid=290
He was stuffed for a while because his mum went over to see him and accidentally brought his passport back to england. They had to send it back through the post :)
Hes on tour now, last I heard he was in Florida.
I dont suppose thats a good answer. Go to citizens advice or something, they'll tell you where to go.
andy
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=590&c=3&userid=290
stu
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=589&c=3&userid=290
zeus
out of date
To live somewhere permanently you need citizenship.
Its really hard to get citizenship even if your going to Australia.
I think you have prove you are a credit to the country.... ie you can work without hinder etc. Also you have to go there and stay there. I know someone who moved to australia to manage a bank. Shes been there for 10 years now and has only been back to the UK once, simply because she isnt allowed. You have to stay in the country for the long term. No going there, filling in forms and then coming home for a bit!
She is only just about to get a passport.
I think if you can prove you have close ties to a foreign country, ie your mum and dad are american you can apply for dual citizenship but you have to get someone of authority to endorse you. This lad I know who went to america is maltese and they (his brother and sister too) had to get a maltese mp to sign thier papers. But it was a quick process, they literally got a maltese passport through the post a few months later. To be honest they own property over there and all that so maybe that was an exceptionally easy scenario.
Dont be fooled by the close relationships between countries, it doesnt make it quicker or easier. My friend in Australia proved that!
You can get short term working permits though. I have worked with South Africans and Australians who got over no problems at all. There were 6-7 south africans who came to lay drains with us. They lived in a caravan on site for months one end to save cash and were saying how its hotter here than in SA! Its when we had those near to 40'c days.
Here we all are working hard, getting stoned and driving heavy machinery as always :)
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=591&c=3
They were saying how far the money would go in SA. One pointed at my bike boots asking the price. I payed £180ish for them and he said in SA they would cost the equivalent of £700 over here! Nows the time to move to the US. $2 for every £.... lovely!
I suppose I should backup my point in my last post.... go to citizens advice. You can usually get and couple of hours with a solicitor for free if you go there too.
Ive only just noticed your Canadian! Surely you have some sort of citizens advice in canada?
Its really hard to get citizenship even if your going to Australia.
I think you have prove you are a credit to the country.... ie you can work without hinder etc. Also you have to go there and stay there. I know someone who moved to australia to manage a bank. Shes been there for 10 years now and has only been back to the UK once, simply because she isnt allowed. You have to stay in the country for the long term. No going there, filling in forms and then coming home for a bit!
She is only just about to get a passport.
I think if you can prove you have close ties to a foreign country, ie your mum and dad are american you can apply for dual citizenship but you have to get someone of authority to endorse you. This lad I know who went to america is maltese and they (his brother and sister too) had to get a maltese mp to sign thier papers. But it was a quick process, they literally got a maltese passport through the post a few months later. To be honest they own property over there and all that so maybe that was an exceptionally easy scenario.
Dont be fooled by the close relationships between countries, it doesnt make it quicker or easier. My friend in Australia proved that!
You can get short term working permits though. I have worked with South Africans and Australians who got over no problems at all. There were 6-7 south africans who came to lay drains with us. They lived in a caravan on site for months one end to save cash and were saying how its hotter here than in SA! Its when we had those near to 40'c days.
Here we all are working hard, getting stoned and driving heavy machinery as always :)
http://www.hardwareforums.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=591&c=3
They were saying how far the money would go in SA. One pointed at my bike boots asking the price. I payed £180ish for them and he said in SA they would cost the equivalent of £700 over here! Nows the time to move to the US. $2 for every £.... lovely!
I suppose I should backup my point in my last post.... go to citizens advice. You can usually get and couple of hours with a solicitor for free if you go there too.
Ive only just noticed your Canadian! Surely you have some sort of citizens advice in canada?
StimpE
lol, Internet!
I just thought I'd get the jist of it here, then If I'm still interested down the road I will go and see some sort of 'citizens advice'.
So theoretically I could:
Pickup;packup, cross the border and move into an apartment in the US. as for finding a job, I'd need to be legally eligible to work in the US, which is where a greencard and/or visa comes into play, correct?
zeus
out of date
It's illegal im sure but you'll probably just get sent home if get caught.
DaRuSsIaMaN
Geek Comrade
When u apply for a job they always ask for your social security number. And same thing with getting an apartment. So, Zeus, how did your mate and his uncle accomplish all that?? What did they do about the social security number issue? Especially for getting a driving license? Did they just show their passports?
zeus
out of date
They had thier own business painting houses. Whether they were legal businesses or not I dont know. For his uncle to have been there for 20 odd years there must be some way. I dont know about the driving part. He went on drive from california, to chicago and then down to miami. If he was an illegal driver he surely would have got into trouble on a tour that long! He said he put 10,000 miles on the clock. All on his own too :)
He actually came back yesterday. I phoned his brother to be told "he's back" He wanted to surprise us all but as soon as one person saw him the word got around.
They knew he had been in the country for 3-4 years. He got interviewed in the airports (lax and one in atlanta) so at some point they must have logged his passport number somewhere down the line. To be honest after not seeing one of your best mates for 3-4 years we didnt really talk about airports! I got the impression they laid down some rules for him going back to the US because he was talking about going to canada with his brother because he couldnt go back to california.
Maybe he just gave em fake numbers. If its anything like over here you dont find out if a national insurance number (same as your social security number) is fake until the end of the tax year.
He actually came back yesterday. I phoned his brother to be told "he's back" He wanted to surprise us all but as soon as one person saw him the word got around.
They knew he had been in the country for 3-4 years. He got interviewed in the airports (lax and one in atlanta) so at some point they must have logged his passport number somewhere down the line. To be honest after not seeing one of your best mates for 3-4 years we didnt really talk about airports! I got the impression they laid down some rules for him going back to the US because he was talking about going to canada with his brother because he couldnt go back to california.
Maybe he just gave em fake numbers. If its anything like over here you dont find out if a national insurance number (same as your social security number) is fake until the end of the tax year.
StimpE
lol, Internet!
It's the same in canada as well, if an employer asks for your SIN (social insurance number) then you can just give them a fake one, but they'll find out as soon as they file for taxes.
Big B
HWF Godfather
Get the green card. While we Americans born here aren't fond of illegals, those that went through all the hoops are even more irate. We have laws, and while, yes, you don't have to follow them, it's going to make things better in the fact that you won't have to look over your shoulder all the time to make sure an INS agent isn't on your tail or worry about being deported. Entering the system illegally creates more problems because you have to stay illegal, be it with Social Security numbers, banking...etc.
I don't think it's a lot to ask for someone coming into a country to do it legally. We have the means to get in legally, and if nothing else, it's at least courteous to follow them.
I'm one of those people that supports a border fence...hell I'd just as soon have armed patrols that shoot to kill at the borders. I do have a real issue with people sneaking across when we have the legal means to do so. Not to mention, it looks awfully suspicious when someone is sneaking across....
I don't think it's a lot to ask for someone coming into a country to do it legally. We have the means to get in legally, and if nothing else, it's at least courteous to follow them.
I'm one of those people that supports a border fence...hell I'd just as soon have armed patrols that shoot to kill at the borders. I do have a real issue with people sneaking across when we have the legal means to do so. Not to mention, it looks awfully suspicious when someone is sneaking across....
DaRuSsIaMaN
Geek Comrade
I support a border fence too. There's no reason not to have one other than money to build it, really. I don't agree with having patrols shooting to kill thought; that sounds really crazy to me, actually. But anyway that's another topic and pretty irrelevant here.
But BigB is right about getting a green card. It should be a pretty easy process for a Canadian. Despite the fact that these things have gotten slow after 9/11. My roommate is still living here "illegally" because of that (but he's Korean). Because they applied for a green card when their visa ran out but it was just b4 9/11. After it happened the whole process ground to a stop and so they still havent gotten a green card or anything even though it's been years and even though they meet all the requirements and shouldn't be denied it for any reason. That kind of thing might be your only problem. But I think for a Canadian citizen it won't be an issue. They'll probly put your application into the fast lane and process it in like a month and u'll be good to go. I dunno, maybe I'm too optimistic. But I really don't see why they'd have any reason to not give u a green card quick and easy.
But BigB is right about getting a green card. It should be a pretty easy process for a Canadian. Despite the fact that these things have gotten slow after 9/11. My roommate is still living here "illegally" because of that (but he's Korean). Because they applied for a green card when their visa ran out but it was just b4 9/11. After it happened the whole process ground to a stop and so they still havent gotten a green card or anything even though it's been years and even though they meet all the requirements and shouldn't be denied it for any reason. That kind of thing might be your only problem. But I think for a Canadian citizen it won't be an issue. They'll probly put your application into the fast lane and process it in like a month and u'll be good to go. I dunno, maybe I'm too optimistic. But I really don't see why they'd have any reason to not give u a green card quick and easy.