Looking for H1 sponsorship under the Visa Waiver Program

[malc]

Hello,

I am French. I have an American girlfriend living in the US. We want to live some time together before getting married, so we are trying to find an alternative option (H1 sponsorship).

Our plan is to look for a company willing to sponsor me while in the US with a visitor visa.

I have several questions regarding this :
Do many people do this ? Is it a good idea ?
Is this legal ? If not is it "tolerated", I mean: could I really get in trouble ? / Am I likely to get in trouble ?

Thanks for the help

Malc

[PraetorianXI]

There is not a problem for you to obtain an H1 visa. You must qualify for it on your own terms though and your girlfriend has no impact on it.

Only if she was your "fiancee" there may be more questions, but.

The H1 visa is a dual intent visa, so even if your final plans are to live in the US, that is allowed under that visa. Many people with H1B visas end up marrying someone in the US and living there.

[malc]

Thanks for your answer.

But, isn't it illegal to look for a job in the US with a tourist visa ?
There's a question on the I-94W that says "Are you seeking to work in the US ?" where one has to answer no. Is it strictly enforced ? Could I get in trouble by letting many recruiters know about my situation ?

[PraetorianXI]

Yes, it is illegal to work under a tourist visa.

But you would not be working until you actually receive an H1B visa, that is what I understood from your post.

You must always answer the truth in any immigration form, so if it asks if you are looking for a job you must answer "yes".

[malc]

I'm already in the US. They would never have let me in if I had answered "Yes" to that question.

I know I can't work, I am just talking about job seeking. I haven't started looking for a job. I just would like to know if I could easily get in trouble, since many companies/recruiters will know about my situation.

Thanks again for your help.

[PraetorianXI]

If you "just now" decided to look for a job, then there is no problem.

There is also no problem with companies and recruiters... you need H1B sponsorship.