For those who have followed our story, you will notice that L and I are not from the same town, country, or even continent — Sometimes I even wonder if we are from the same planet, to be fair! I am from Sheffield, England but came to the States in 2016. From there, a series of fortunate events lead to not only meeting and eventually marrying L but to getting a job and a visa through work then a different visa through work before eventually getting a Green Card.
L is interested in how people immigrate to different countries and she really enjoys mine so she asked me to write about my experience as a foreigner who has successfully immigrated to America. Because of that, I’ll explain how I did this, how anyone can better understand the confusing visa process, and how you may be able to make this dream a reality too.
I do want to be clear though: This post is not going to tell you exactly how to move to America because I am not an expert or even extremely knowledgeable on visas and immigration.
However, I will give general information that I have learned through my super expensive immigration attorney, thanks to my work.
Therefore, this post will include useful visa facts, links to government sites where more detailed instructions can be found, my personal story (though I was very lucky), and advice from me and my attorney.
First, there is a significant amount of information online as to how people can immigrate to the U. S., but the majority of it is open to interpretation and complicated.
One reason is because there are around 185 different types, and they can be broken into two main categories: nonimmigrant and immigrant visas.
Within these two categories, there are many more sub-categories, including education, travel, family, and humanitarian. Let’s start at the beginning …
↠ NONIMMIGRANT VISAS ↞
Nonimmigrant visas are temporary, meaning they last various lengths of time but are less than three years. They are used to grant access to work, study, travel, or briefly live in the States. I started here as an expat, meaning I was temporarily in America for work reasons …
At the time, I lived in England and worked for a company called the Advanced Manufacturing Research Center (or AMRC). I was a manufacturing research engineer and specialized in Computer Aided Manufacturing, methodology development, and testing for the manufacture of aerospace engine components.
I worked predominantly on Rolls-Royce projects (as in engine manufacturer not vehicle manufacturer) that were used to retain U. K.-manufacturing jobs and infrastructure. Specifically, these projects included jet engine casings, discs, and shafts. (If you’re interested in the AMRC’s work that helped the U. K. increase its gross domestic product, you can click these two below articles to read more:)
I had worked for the AMRC for six years, but in 2015 my personal life changed massively. I had recently come out of a long-term relationship, moved out of the house we lived in, and moved back into my childhood home with my parents. I felt like I was taking huge steps backwards, but the opportunity to save money, rebuild myself, and reacquaint myself with old friends was needed. (Thank you to everyone who showed their time, effort, and love towards me during that time!) Around one year into sorting myself, I was ready for my own space and I started looking for an apartment. I found an amazing spot in the center of Sheffield — It was close to the river and near several amazing pubs and bars, close to friends and work colleagues, as well as a five-minute walk from one of the best Indian restaurants in the city. (If you’re not aware, Indian food is one of the most popular types of cuisine in the U. K. This is largely in part of the large amounts of Indians who have been emigrating to the U. K. since the 1960s.) The apartment rental company even allowed my aquarium and pets, which I planned to buy a kitten after I bought a sofa!
The day after paying a deposit to hold the apartment, my manager pulled me aside at work and asked, “Hey, do you want to work in the States for six months?”
Here’s why he asked: Rolls-Royce is a key partner of the AMRC so it asked the AMRC to support a new, similar manufacturing research center that was set-up in the States (specifically in Virginia). This new center was called the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (or CCAM), and I should note that I was not the first person to be asked to support it — I was actually the third with two other engineers having completed two six-month placements before me.
There was some back and forth discussion between myself and work before a commitment came quickly from the AMRC to send me to Virginia for six months. This meant I had to abandon the apartment plan and instead get on a train headed down to London to visit the U. S. Embassy.
Mostly people travel to the States by obtaining an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (or ESTA). An ESTA determines if foreigners are eligible to travel in the U. S., and it grants the user up to 90 days of access to the States for business or pleasure, though it does not allow for work during visits. There are certain countries eligible for an ESTA, and these are listed on the visa waiver program. (More information can be found on the U. S. Customs and Border Protection site.)
If a country is not listed, the user will have to go through the application process for a temporary visa, such as a B-2. The B-2 visa can be used for holiday travel (or vacation to Americans), medical treatment, social events, and study (that would not apply towards a degree).
Here’s more on coming to the States for educational purposes too: There are multiple visa options for this, including O and J visas. These allow people to come to the U. S. to learn at different levels of education, though it is often at higher levels, such as PhDs.
It is important to point out that ESTAs are not visas — This means because I was going to America for work, a regular ESTA could not be used.
If traveling for work purposes, there are at least ten options available depending on employment in the home country. These options include B-1 (which I will discuss here), H-1 B (which I will have more in a Part Two post coming soon), H-2 A, L-1, and Q-1. (For a full list, visit the Nonimmigrant Visa Categories.)
I needed a B-1 visa. A B-1 visa is valid for one to 10 years and allows someone to work for up to six-months in America but not be employed by a U. S. company. (Also, people with this type of visa are unable to obtain Social Security Numbers and U. S. driver’s licenses, not that they need them.) My B-1 visa was obtained through the AMRC (as the sponsor) and the U. S. Embassy (the authorizer).
To get it, several work forms and reference letters were submitted. Following that, I had an interview at the embassy. There, I stood in line with around 50 to 100 people to check in. While in line, I met an amazing man named Ravi Singh. He runs Khalsa Aid, a U. K.-based international non-profit humanitarian organization providing support to victims of natural and man-made disasters around the world. We certainly need more people like Ravi!
When my number was called, I went to a kiosk, gave my name, and showed the clerk all of the documentation I had brought along with me. Once everything was checked, I was asked to wait again before being called into my interview. Here, I was asked a number of questions as to why I was going to the U. S., who I was working for in the U. K., where I would be staying, what I would be doing, etc. At the end of my interview, I had to surrender my passport to allow the Embassy to add in my B-1 visa. (They would mail me back my passport.) Then, I was set.
I decided to head back up north … only to find all the tube stations closed due to a terrorist attack in London. Knowing I had an open return ticket, I headed on foot back to King’s Cross train station.
Soon enough, I was back in Sheffield having a beer with my parents, and within couple of weeks I had my B-1 visa in hand …
and was on the way to Manchester airport with my friend and boss, James. James was the first engineer to come to the States from the AMRC so he came along to reconnect with members of staff at both CCAM and Rolls-Royce and discuss new projects that were coming up. He was also coming along to help me settle in to life in Richmond and show me around.
Walking into 86-degree Fahrenheit (30-degree Celsius for everyone else) Virginia heat and humidity in June was certainly different from what we had left behind! Even better, my first hire car was a Dodge Charger (though, unfortunately, it was only a V6).
Relying on advice from the two engineers who had worked in Virginia before me, I felt pretty comfortable with the transition from life in the U. K. to life in the U. S. A., but there were a few key moments when life seemed surreal …
The first was the recurring theme of my credit card company cancelling my card as it was regularly used in Virginia … even though I told my credit card company that is where I was going to be living! This always happened at really inappropriate times, such as when buying petrol, groceries, and paying my tab at a bar!
The first time I was at a local grocery store, I freaked out as I did not have any cash on me. Fortunately, the store was nice (or pitied me) and actually gave me my groceries for free.
There was also the frustration of buying something for $0.99 and going to the register only to find it is not $0.99 … It is actually $1.04 because of state sales tax. (America, why can’t you include the tax in the price!? This is how everywhere else in the world does it!)
Then there were two ladies at a petrol station on my way to work who would lose their minds to my English accent and ask me to say certain words to them (a favorite was ‘water’), which would leave them in fits of giggles. One day, I walked back to my car and the guy who was served after me came out and said, “Boy, you need to get back in there and get that girl’s number! She didn’t stop talking about you after you left!”
Another time I spent around $200 on food so I had filled my fridge and freezer to the brim … only for a hurricane to come through during the night and knock out power for six days! I had an electric oven too so I couldn’t cook any food! Hurricanes rarely hit England so this experience was new.
And before I share with y’all my ‘Six Months in Virginia’ diary, there was my first Friday Night Cheers — Friday Night Cheers is a series of live music events that take place in June and July on a cool little island in Richmond so on one side of the stage of Friday Night Cheers, there is the Virginia’s capitol city and canal; and the other, the train line and James River. The events are catered by local food trucks and breweries, and the music is a great mix of genres.
I remember during my first visit I was sat with a cold beer enjoying the hot evening air, listening to music, watching hundreds of people move around me … and not one of those people knew who I was. It was a surreal feeling and one that made me feel strangely at peace.
Back to visas though — America would soon become my home and coming up in another post, I’ll explain I got employed here …
Disclaimer
I believe what is included within this post is correct; however, if you are aware of errors, please comment, and I will update where applicable. None of the above should be considered legal advice and an immigration attorney is highly suggested to discuss immigration plans.
↠ SEEK THE REST OF THIS STORY ↞
Coming soon!
