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J-1 visa help
Hello all,
I have been reading through many of the forums and information provided here, but I'm still not sure if I completely understand how to go about getting my boyfriend (well now actually fiance) here to the USA to be with me.
I am an American citizen with a B.A., degree from a University in the US. I currently work full time at a NGO. My fiance would like to move to the US after he finishes his equivalent of a B.A. from a University in the UK. He is a UK citizen (which I believe does NOT have a 2 year J-1 rule. Additionally, his visa will NOT be sponsored by the government) He would like to move here come September 2010 in order to work as a teacher's associate (or trainee). He already has somewhat of a job lined up, through the school he worked at over the summer as a staff assistant/ intern on a summer j-1 visa. When I say "somewhat" they have verbally offered him a job, but nothing is in writing yet.
My first instinct is for him to apply for a J-1 visa, the problem with this visa is that it expires in 18 months. We are okay with this, seeing as we would like to get married Summer '11, but we worry that he may not even be eligible for this J-1 visa because it is not his intention to go back to the UK after his visa expires. If we do go through with a J-1 visa, what process do we need to go through to change his status from a person on a J-1 visa to a spousal visa. I have read through the forums and saw that to apply for a spousal visa, you complete a 1-130, I-485, and a K-3, but are there any other applications we would need to complete? And in what time frame would we need to start applying? Can we apply for these visas before we get married (we plan on getting married Aug '11) so that when he returns to the US Sept '11 he can enter on a permanent spousal visa. What I worry about is applying for a permanent stay spousal visa while currently on a J-1 visa goes against the regulations of the J-1 visa. I also worry that despite being married, he won't be able to come back to the US to live and work after our marriage because the length of time the proper paperwork takes to complete.
Our next thought is that he applies under the employment based visa (Employment Third Preference (E3)). Is this option better? This seems to be a more permanent option. Can he apply for this type of a visa as a teacher's associate? Additionally, I'm not sure if he would even qualify for an E3 visa because I don't think he qualifies for a Labor Certification since a teacher's associate position does not seem like the type of position which is that difficult to fill.
So now I am left even more confused and anxious. Does anyone have advice for how we should proceed? Is J-1 the best option? Or does someone have another idea for how we can proceed?
Many thanks,
-A
I have been reading through many of the forums and information provided here, but I'm still not sure if I completely understand how to go about getting my boyfriend (well now actually fiance) here to the USA to be with me.
I am an American citizen with a B.A., degree from a University in the US. I currently work full time at a NGO. My fiance would like to move to the US after he finishes his equivalent of a B.A. from a University in the UK. He is a UK citizen (which I believe does NOT have a 2 year J-1 rule. Additionally, his visa will NOT be sponsored by the government) He would like to move here come September 2010 in order to work as a teacher's associate (or trainee). He already has somewhat of a job lined up, through the school he worked at over the summer as a staff assistant/ intern on a summer j-1 visa. When I say "somewhat" they have verbally offered him a job, but nothing is in writing yet.
My first instinct is for him to apply for a J-1 visa, the problem with this visa is that it expires in 18 months. We are okay with this, seeing as we would like to get married Summer '11, but we worry that he may not even be eligible for this J-1 visa because it is not his intention to go back to the UK after his visa expires. If we do go through with a J-1 visa, what process do we need to go through to change his status from a person on a J-1 visa to a spousal visa. I have read through the forums and saw that to apply for a spousal visa, you complete a 1-130, I-485, and a K-3, but are there any other applications we would need to complete? And in what time frame would we need to start applying? Can we apply for these visas before we get married (we plan on getting married Aug '11) so that when he returns to the US Sept '11 he can enter on a permanent spousal visa. What I worry about is applying for a permanent stay spousal visa while currently on a J-1 visa goes against the regulations of the J-1 visa. I also worry that despite being married, he won't be able to come back to the US to live and work after our marriage because the length of time the proper paperwork takes to complete.
Our next thought is that he applies under the employment based visa (Employment Third Preference (E3)). Is this option better? This seems to be a more permanent option. Can he apply for this type of a visa as a teacher's associate? Additionally, I'm not sure if he would even qualify for an E3 visa because I don't think he qualifies for a Labor Certification since a teacher's associate position does not seem like the type of position which is that difficult to fill.
So now I am left even more confused and anxious. Does anyone have advice for how we should proceed? Is J-1 the best option? Or does someone have another idea for how we can proceed?
Many thanks,
-A
