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Moving to the USA what VIsa do I need.

2963 Views 12 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  Fatbrit, 
M
We have been married 20 years, my Wife who is a US citizen, and I a UK Citizen, have been living in the UK and Spain during this time. We have 3 children who all have US Passports and are under the age of 16. We are planning to move back to the USA in July, however I will still be working in Europe and Intend to work 2 weeks in the UK and spend 2 weeks at home in America. I have read up on Visa`s and am unclear what type of Visa would be suitable for me. I wont be working in the US, so wont need a work permit. My income will come from the UK. Would a Multi entry Visa suffice?. Any advice would be appreciated.
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Fatbrit
MB1963 said:
Any advice would be appreciated.
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I don't see any visa or status that would suit you!

VWP is for tourism. You'll get away with it for a while, but the sheer frequency of your visits will quickly lead to trips to secondary and then refused entry.

You don't fit the criteria for a B2 visa since you can use the VWP....and the conditions are the same as the VWP anyway.

An immigrant visa giving you permanent residency is probably the best answer. But then you're paying US taxes to Uncle Sam.

Run it through a lawyer. But don't be surprised if the answer is that there is no way to do exactly what you want.
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Bevdeforges
Technically, if you are moving to the US with your family, you will need permanent residence status in order to work the way you are proposing - and that means paying taxes to Uncle Sam. The fact of your income coming from the UK is of little or no consequence given that your "primary base of interest" (i.e. where your family is living and where you return to on a regular basis to see them) is in the US.

You should probably check with an immigration attorney like Fatbrit says, but in the long run you're going to have to have your spouse sponsor you for a spousal visa and permanent residence.
Cheers,
Bev
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MB1963 said:
We have been married 20 years, my Wife who is a US citizen, and I a UK Citizen, have been living in the UK and Spain during this time. We have 3 children who all have US Passports and are under the age of 16. We are planning to move back to the USA in July, however I will still be working in Europe and Intend to work 2 weeks in the UK and spend 2 weeks at home in America. I have read up on Visa`s and am unclear what type of Visa would be suitable for me. I wont be working in the US, so wont need a work permit. My income will come from the UK. Would a Multi entry Visa suffice?. Any advice would be appreciated.
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You have a major problem because if your wife sponsors you for a green card (I have one from work) then you have to stay in the US while you go through the procedures. Also you have to stay the majority of your time in the US during the green card five year wait before you can apply for US citizenship. If you work outside the US and only visit your family occasionally you will be denied the green card. You can also be denied visits to the US if you don’t go through the Green card process, but appear to be trying to live in the US as a virtual resident. Tax is not an issue because there is a double tax agreement between the US and Europe so you only pay one, and if you are away from the US you get $86k extra tax allowance.
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D
happy bunny said:
You have a major problem because if your wife sponsors you for a green card (I have one from work) then you have to stay in the US while you go through the procedures. Also you have to stay the majority of your time in the US during the green card five year wait before you can apply for US citizenship. If you work outside the US and only visit your family occasionally you will be denied the green card. You can also be denied visits to the US if you don’t go through the Green card process, but appear to be trying to live in the US as a virtual resident. Tax is not an issue because there is a double tax agreement between the US and Europe so you only pay one, and if you are away from the US you get $86k extra tax allowance.
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More nonsense ... He does not have to stay while the green card process is going through .. but be here for the biometrics on one day


Its not a year wait ..it actually 2 years and 9 months after he gets the Green card
..but he will have trouble getting citizenship
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Davis1 said:
More nonsense ... He does not have to stay while the green card process is going through .. but be here for the biometrics on one day


Its not a year wait ..it actually 2 years and 9 months after he gets the Green card
..but he will have trouble getting citizenship
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Well you are simply wrong. My pal went through the process and my post is correct.
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Bevdeforges
happy bunny said:
Tax is not an issue because there is a double tax agreement between the US and Europe so you only pay one, and if you are away from the US you get $86k extra tax allowance.
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In order to get the overseas earned income allowance, you need to be living outside the US for a full and consecutive 12 months, with only limited (i.e. no more than 30 days) of physical presence in the US. That's not just for the first year, either - it's for every year you want to claim the exclusion.
Cheers,
Bev
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M
Thank You

Many thanks for the varied replies, my understanding is that the US and UK have a tax agreement, so I wont be double taxed, I can apply for a Spouse Visa whilst in Europe and hopefully giving myself 8 months to achieve this will be enough. I will have some explaining to do when entering the US but will have documented evidence that I have business in Europe and of course 6 months worth of return tickets. As my wife and children are US Citizens and once I have the Visa which entitles me to be in the US there hopefully should be no reason for me to be blocked at port of entry. I am seeing a Specialist Lawyer in London next week and will let you know what they suggest.
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Bevdeforges said:
In order to get the overseas earned income allowance, you need to be living outside the US for a full and consecutive 12 months, with only limited (i.e. no more than 30 days) of physical presence in the US. That's not just for the first year, either - it's for every year you want to claim the exclusion.
Cheers,
Bev
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Hi That's right. The rule is 'not maintain a residence' which gets interpreted as not owing a house in the USA and so a lot of folk do not claim it, but really it means not having the physical presence as you say. I am a US resident but work outside the US and claim the allowance no problem. I have passed the same info to loads of friends and acquaintances who are now also enjoying the allowance too. :D
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MB1963 said:
We have been married 20 years, my Wife who is a US citizen, and I a UK Citizen, have been living in the UK and Spain during this time. We have 3 children who all have US Passports and are under the age of 16. We are planning to move back to the USA in July, however I will still be working in Europe and Intend to work 2 weeks in the UK and spend 2 weeks at home in America. I have read up on Visa`s and am unclear what type of Visa would be suitable for me. I wont be working in the US, so wont need a work permit. My income will come from the UK. Would a Multi entry Visa suffice?. Any advice would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
You might get by with a 10 year multiple entry visa for the USA which is a lot less hassle if you are not working for a US company or subsidiary of one. I wrote a letter for an Indian business contact saying how he needed to visit the USA regularly and he got one. I also got one for my wife and so long as we come and go with tickets already in hand at the entry we are OK. Several of my pals have the same arrangement as me. But for sure you need an attorney as does anyone really with complex situations. All the forums can do if offer case histories of people’s individual experiences. Anyway this was my experience.:)
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Bevdeforges
happy bunny said:
Hi That's right. The rule is 'not maintain a residence' which gets interpreted as not owing a house in the USA and so a lot of folk do not claim it, but really it means not having the physical presence as you say. I am a US resident but work outside the US and claim the allowance no problem. I have passed the same info to loads of friends and acquaintances who are now also enjoying the allowance too. :D
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Sorry, but that is not the rule... The rule is that you either must meet the "12 month physical presence" test or you must meet the "bona fide resident" test (i.e. you must be a bona fide resident of somewhere other than the US). Under the 12 month physical presence test, you must be physically outside the US for 330 days in a 12 month period.

I assume you are holding onto your green card and that's how you "technically" remain a US resident while claiming the exclusion. Good luck with that.
Cheers,
Bev
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Fatbrit
happy bunny said:
You might get by with a 10 year multiple entry visa for the USA which is a lot less hassle if you are not working for a US company or subsidiary of one. I wrote a letter for an Indian business contact saying how he needed to visit the USA regularly and he got one. I also got one for my wife and so long as we come and go with tickets already in hand at the entry we are OK. Several of my pals have the same arrangement as me. But for sure you need an attorney as does anyone really with complex situations. All the forums can do if offer case histories of people’s individual experiences. Anyway this was my experience.:)
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As you say, he was an Indian business contact. The OP is from a VWP country. and that makes all the difference in the world. Consulates are reluctant to issue a B2 where the applicant has use of the VWP. They are also going to be worried that he intends to live in the US since his family all live here. I really think a B2 application is going to be a step backwards. But I agree he should certainly run it by a US immigration attorney.
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Fatbrit
MB1963 said:
Many thanks for the varied replies, my understanding is that the US and UK have a tax agreement, so I wont be double taxed, I can apply for a Spouse Visa whilst in Europe and hopefully giving myself 8 months to achieve this will be enough. I will have some explaining to do when entering the US but will have documented evidence that I have business in Europe and of course 6 months worth of return tickets. As my wife and children are US Citizens and once I have the Visa which entitles me to be in the US there hopefully should be no reason for me to be blocked at port of entry. I am seeing a Specialist Lawyer in London next week and will let you know what they suggest.
Click to expand...
The obvious answer is an immigrant visa giving you permanent residency in the US. You'll not have a great problem travelling in or out provided you spend at half your time here and never stay out longer than 6 months, and you'll enjoy all the other benefits such as a driver license without hassle, a social security number with which to establish your US credit history, etc.

Your probably path is filing the I-130 directly with the US consulate where you are resident for an IR1 immigrant visa. Your timeline is perhaps on the high side -- London is taking around 6 months on these from start to finish. At all costs don't get your lawyer to push you towards a K3 -- these are a waste of time and will be inconvenient for you since you will have to complete the processing in the US. With an IR1, you're done with the immigration paperwork (save address changes) for a long time on your first entry.

The only immigration issue I can see is that you will find it difficult to naturalize with your proposed schedule. But there's no reason you can't live here indefinitely as a permanent resident.

The big can of worms, however, that you've opened up is tax liability. IMO, the main specialist you need to use the services of is a tax one, with experience and proven results in a complicated case like yours.
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