Hi Gang,

It's nice to meet you all!

My name is Vivienne and I'm from Derbyshire in the UK. I Currently work for a well known international courier company in the customs clearance department. My hobbies are reading, surfing the internet, watching movies and hanging out with friends.

I am new to all this forum stuff so please bear with me and I will try and get the hang of it asap!

I am looking to move to New York. The company I work for haven't been very helpful in helping me secure employment. I have applied for job's with other company's but so far, nothing. So my plan now is to just fly to New York, check into a hotel / b & b and trawl the streets looking for work. Even if it's working as a receptionist in a hotel or waiting tables. I know a little bit of Spanish but not enough to hold a conversation. I never went to college which I know is a major drawback. My questions are:

Do I have to tell UK / US customs of my intentions or can I just say I'm on an extended holiday?

How long can I stay in the USA before I have to come back to the UK?

Any help you can give is greatly appreciated

Many thanks

Viv

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

Technically, you can come over to the US for a period of up to 90 days on the visa waiver program (i.e. without a visa). That's 90 days - not three months. They do count the days.

When you enter the US, they'll ask you if you're there on business or pleasure - and again, technically, you're on a holiday. They will ask, however, how long you intend to stay - and if you tell them "90 days" they may ask you to prove that you will indeed be going home after this time. There will also be questions about what you are planning on doing during that time. While it's not illegal to be "job hunting" the response will draw lots more questions.

The problem you will encounter is that it's not just a matter of finding a job. They are really starting to crack down on employers who hire foreigners who do not have the proper paperwork, so you may find that most potential employers won't want to talk to you.

To hire a foreigner means that the employer is willing to support your visa application (and you'll have to apply for your visa from back in the UK). This is an expensive and somewhat onerous process, so you have to have something to offer that will make it worthwhile for the employer to (1) spend the money (2) go through the hassle of "proving" that they couldn't find a US national or someone already legally in the country to do the job and (3) wait the months it will take to get both sides of the visa application processed and a visa issued before you can start work.

And on top of it all, the H1B visas which everyone is hot to get are capped at a ridiculously low number and now are subject to a lottery. So even if you can find an employer willing to go through all the hassle, if your name doesn't get drawn, you're out of luck (and out of pocket for all the filing fees).

Keep trying with your current employer. Find out what it would take to become eligible for a transfer. It could be education or experience or something else, but over the longer term it will be far easier to go over on a transfer than trying to find "any job" on your own.
Cheers,
Bev

Unless you have something really unique to offer, you have no chance of finding a job or an employer to hire you. I think coming to the US for a vacation is a nice idea, but it will probably be a waste of money as far as getting a job is concerned.

New York is the US's London. It is very expensive, apartments are impossible to find, and staying there for 88 days (the other too are your arrival and departure days) will be very, very expensive.

Look through the America forum, down below in the By Country forum, for some other threads on moving to America.

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This is your best chance! Push -- if they won't consider it, go and work for one of their competitors for a year (required for the visa) and push them instead.

I wouldn't dwell on solely NY -- go wherever they'll transfer you in the US.

You present plans may mean you end up with anything up to a lifetime ban from entering the US -- and are most probably a plan to nowhere.

Thank you all for your reply's. I know it's tough over there and I am having second thoughts. I will keep trying with my employer to secure a job and think about other area's in the US to experiance.

Thanks again

Viv

Thank you all for your reply's. I understand what you mean about NYC being like London. I'll have a re-think about where else I'd like to relocate to.

Thanks again for the advice

Viv

Hello and Welcome to the forum.
I am a Jersey Girl living 20 minutes by train from NYC.
It is a great place to visit but I would not want to live there perhaps you might want to consider living in one of the cities offering the direct train ride into the city such as; Linden, N.J or Elizabeth, N.J.
The advantage is lower taxes and rental costs........
The American area of the thread hopefully can give you a few more cities offering a quick train ride into the city.

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