Canadian wanting short term and/or Seasonal employment in the USA

[Rhoda]

Okay - I'm a Canadian wanting to work temporarily in the US, specifically - Orlando. Unfortunately, I am not qualified for the TN Visa (I think) as I do not have a university degree - however - I do have my Secretarial Certificate, a Travel & Tourism Diploma and will soon get my Make-Up Artistry Diploma. If anything, I would qualify for an H2 visa. I have looked on the employFlorida website - there are plenty of administrative position that I qualify for...unfortunately; however...it states I require a work authorization.

I have been on the dol website, etc...researching through all the links... I require a work auth...but can't get one unless I have a sponsor and the employer won't sponsor unless one has a work auth...it feels like it goes in circles. (am i getting this wrong?)

My reason for this work visa - i have a boyfriend in Orlando. Need I explain more? If we go the marriage route - which I would rather not at this point - i don't understand why we might be in violation of something. (I can't remember what thread I read it on.) From what I remember of the thread, we "shouldn't" get married first, etc...before processing papers? What is that all about? I haven't read anything from my research on this at all.

Looking for the best options - please help.

[Bevdeforges]

Hi Rhoda,
Welcome to the forum. Wish I could offer a magic bullet to get you into the US, but as you've noticed, it's getting more and more difficult all the time. While you certainly qualify for those administrative positions you've been looking at, there is hardly a shortage of administrative staff in the US (nor of makeup artists). And that H2-B visa is only for workers who fill a specific need in the US.

Maybe it makes a bit more sense if you know that it costs for someone to sponsor a visa or green card candidate - several hundred dollars, in fact. For an employer to want to bother with all the paperwork and the expense, they have to be hiring someone who can do something they can't find in the local job market.

If you're not ready to get married yet, don't go the marriage route just to get into the US. Like they say, "marry in haste, repent at leisure." I got married to get into a country (France), and things have worked out just fine but it was a long, hard road at first and there were plenty of days I wondered if I had perhaps made a huge mistake - despite the fact that we love each other very much. Besides, you don't want to be under suspicion of a "marriage of convenience." While the movie "Green Card" was a comedy, they can make your life miserable while they determine if you married "for the right reasons."

If you do decide to get married, you don't have to go the fiancée visa route. You could get married in Canada and then apply directly for a green card. The process, however, still takes however long it takes and you may wind up spending some time apart while the paperwork goes through.

BTW, your boyfriend in Orlando is a US citizen, isn't he? The fiancé visa won't work if he's only a green card holder in the US.
Cheers,
Bev

[Rhoda]

Thank you, Bev, for the welcome & advice.

Yes, I don't want to marry in haste.

What if I was willing to pay for the expenses? Will that matter for the employers?

[Rhoda]

Is there a difference between Employment Authorization and Work Visa???

[Bevdeforges]

Actually, I think it's illegal for you to pay the employer's expenses to sponsor in immigration petition.
Cheers,
Bev

[Bevdeforges]

Originally Posted by Rhoda

Is there a difference between Employment Authorization and Work Visa???

Actually, yes. Employment authorization is what the employer has to get (i.e. to prove that he has tried to find someone to fill the post from the local population). The work visa is just a visa that authorizes you to be employed while in the US.

The problem is that the US doesn't have a visa with working privileges that allows you to come to the US to look for work. All the "work visas" are tied to specific jobs or programs. You have to find the job first - and then apply for the visa.
Cheers,
Bev

[synthia]

I'm the one who made the post about not getting married first. It takes longer and is harder if you get married then apply for a visa than if you come into the US on a 'fiancee visa' then get married. You can't work on a financee visa, though.

The problem with your skills is that it will be nearly impossible for any employer to prove that no American citizen or legal resident was available to fill the job.

How is your French? If it is really good, try using that as an edge.

[Bevdeforges]

There was an article in today's Boston Globe about how quickly the H2-B visas have been going. Evidently, they are limited to something like 66,000 per year (down from a couple years ago when they lifted the cap on the number).

The ski resort operators found at the beginning of their season that all the visas had already been filled, and now that the summer resort operators are getting ready to hire for the coming year, it seems like they just stopped processing applications because the visas for the second half of the year are all gone.

If anyone is interested, the article is here: Immigration impasse threatens seasonal businesses - The Boston Globe
Cheers,
Bev

[Bogs]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

Hi Rhoda,
Welcome to the forum. Wish I could offer a magic bullet to get you into the US, but as you've noticed, it's getting more and more difficult all the time. While you certainly qualify for those administrative positions you've been looking at, there is hardly a shortage of administrative staff in the US (nor of makeup artists). And that H2-B visa is only for workers who fill a specific need in the US.

Maybe it makes a bit more sense if you know that it costs for someone to sponsor a visa or green card candidate - several hundred dollars, in fact. For an employer to want to bother with all the paperwork and the expense, they have to be hiring someone who can do something they can't find in the local job market.

If you're not ready to get married yet, don't go the marriage route just to get into the US. Like they say, "marry in haste, repent at leisure." I got married to get into a country (France), and things have worked out just fine but it was a long, hard road at first and there were plenty of days I wondered if I had perhaps made a huge mistake - despite the fact that we love each other very much. Besides, you don't want to be under suspicion of a "marriage of convenience." While the movie "Green Card" was a comedy, they can make your life miserable while they determine if you married "for the right reasons."

If you do decide to get married, you don't have to go the fiancée visa route. You could get married in Canada and then apply directly for a green card. The process, however, still takes however long it takes and you may wind up spending some time apart while the paperwork goes through.

BTW, your boyfriend in Orlando is a US citizen, isn't he? The fiancé visa won't work if he's only a green card holder in the US.
Cheers,
Bev

Hi Bev

Just new here and will be posting for some advice also. I did notice you mentioned about the Canadian applying for a greencard. There are several countries who's citizens don't qualify for a greencard, Canada being one of them.

Bob

[Bevdeforges]

Originally Posted by Bogs

Just new here and will be posting for some advice also. I did notice you mentioned about the Canadian applying for a greencard. There are several countries who's citizens don't qualify for a greencard, Canada being one of them.

Are you sure of that? Or are you referring to the green card lottery?

I know there are some special visa types for Canadian citizens coming to the US to work, but I thought that if they wanted to immigrate permanently they still need a green card.
Cheers,
Bev