am i the only one

[Eric.t 5]

I don't really know how to start this but i have to say this,

am i alone in in having reservations about moving to the US with my wife i honestly think we would have a better life here in the UK for one we won't ever have to worry about going bankrupt through medical bills also i earn far more than i ever could in the USA my wifes family works pretty much 24/7 on a couple of jobs just to keep their heads above water also i really don't like the American work culture as in live to work rather than work to live maybe i have just seen the negitive side of being in america but to be honest i'm scared about our future life i also don't like the fact that there is no middle ground there as far as politics go i neither agre with the left or right of politics but in the USA there is no middle party

sorry about lack of punctuation

yours eric

[mike411 15]

You are right! UK would be better!

The strange thing is that you married the American culture that you don't like! Ironic...

I don’t live to work nor do my friends! We have personal lives! It's how you make of it!

Some like to live BIG by getting the best and only making the bare minimum payments. Others are just fine!

This is America! (Don King)

Edited December 8, 2011 by mike411

[Adriene H 89]

I don't really know how to start this but i have to say this,

am i alone in in having reservations about moving to the US with my wife i honestly think we would have a better life here in the UK for one we won't ever have to worry about going bankrupt through medical bills also i earn far more than i ever could in the USA my wifes family works pretty much 24/7 on a couple of jobs just to keep their heads above water also i really don't like the American work culture as in live to work rather than work to live maybe i have just seen the negitive side of being in america but to be honest i'm scared about our future life i also don't like the fact that there is no middle ground there as far as politics go i neither agre with the left or right of politics but in the USA there is no middle party

sorry about lack of punctuation

yours eric

I beg to differ. My husband and I are in Lancashire, and finally after a

full year of unemployment and job searching, he was able to find a full time job

For the past year, we've been living on his Job Seeker's allowance of £100

every 2 weeks. At least a third of that would go right back in the electric

meter. We live in a one room bedsit. I suppose it doesn't make things easier

that I'm only here on an expired tourist visa. But regardless ... he wasn't

able to find full time work for a year. Needless to say, the weather isn't so

nice either

[naijaboy 16]

I don't really know how to start this but i have to say this,

am i alone in in having reservations about moving to the US with my wife i honestly think we would have a better life here in the UK for one we won't ever have to worry about going bankrupt through medical bills also i earn far more than i ever could in the USA my wifes family works pretty much 24/7 on a couple of jobs just to keep their heads above water also i really don't like the American work culture as in live to work rather than work to live maybe i have just seen the negitive side of being in america but to be honest i'm scared about our future life i also don't like the fact that there is no middle ground there as far as politics go i neither agre with the left or right of politics but in the USA there is no middle party

sorry about lack of punctuation

yours eric

you should give it a go and if things dont work out maybe she can consider moving to England.. America is good to me but yeah health care sucks if your not insured

[Eric.t 5]

You are right! UK would be better!

The strange thing is that you married the American culture that you don't like! Ironic...

I don’t live to work nor do my friends! We have personal lives!

maybe your right

i married my wife because i love her for what she is not because she was from the USA i guess it never really entered my head that at some point in in our married live she would want to return home for good rather than a vacation

[Damian&Kelly 16]

"if your not insured"

My Husband has been here (the US) for going on 4 years, things aren't getting better. Yes we both have jobs, but we can't stay above water. We just started looking into health insurance, I haven't been insured for 6 years now and hubby since he got here, well there's no way we can afford health insurance, the cheapest ($150 a month) still has a $5,000 deductible and doesn't include maternity, if we had the $5,000 we'd pay for better/more coverage. It's just a joke, getting better shouldn't make people rich.

We just decided the only way forward is moving to England. Of course we aren't throwing all the immigration money/work away, we'll wait until hubby gets US citizenship and then we're seeking a better way. Of course there's pros and cons to every thing in life, but at this point England's pros outweigh the cons and we can't wait until we can afford to have children, right now it has to be on hold.

[Eric.t 5]

You are right! UK would be better!

The strange thing is that you married the American culture that you don't like! Ironic...

I don’t live to work nor do my friends! We have personal lives! It's how you make of it!

Some like to live BIG by getting the best and only making the bare minimum payments. Others are just fine!

This is America! (Don King)

i'm sorry if my post sounded anti american that wasn't my intention and if i came of that way i can only say sorry i may just have some very cold feet and if there is any USCIS personell reading this they would have grounds for refusing me right now lol

[Drogs 24]

May i ask how long have you actually spent living in the US?

[ndu26 114]

yes, like someone said it is how you make of it. What are your qualifcations? (rethoric question), how big is your social appetite, how low are you willing to start from. It is not how for but how well! I came in here 5years ago on an employment visa and yes I am aware U.K. and Nigeria are not the same but still this country gave me unbelieveable opportunites. I make a good amnt of money( I have just ONE job), I have a BRAND NEW CAR that is completely paid for (within 2.5years of purchase).I earned my bachelors last year and am in the process of acquiring two masters degree from two schools now.

I dnt go buying clothes, latest gadgets etc just to show off. My credit is EXCELLENT. I live within my means. Occasionally if I have a project, I do extra shifts to meet up the needs for that and then I revert to my regular hours.

You have options so I would say give it 5years ( 3years since you are marrying a USC right?) and after you get ur citizenship, you move back to U.K if you still dont like it.

Edited December 8, 2011 by ndu26

[wee carrington 33]

Is your wife living in the UK with you just now? If not she should think about moving there.

[bigdog 376]

Spend some time here, my wife came to US -some stuff different, but all in all great. Eric, be honest with her, you fell in love with her not he USA. Everyone can work if you want it. Good Luck.

[Max1gk 68]

i'm sorry if my post sounded anti american that wasn't my intention and if i came of that way i can only say sorry i may just have some very cold feet and if there is any USCIS personell reading this they would have grounds for refusing me right now lol

Hey Man I understand your concerns you expressed in your first post and I find them genuine and not anti-american at all. I've been here for my longest period here so far and my opinion is that the US is still a great and amazing country that is definitely worth a shot. Personally I identify the following pros and cons:

Pros:

- despite all the bad economy talks ecc. if you're willing to work here,you WILL work trust me. I've seen many times laid off people here turning their backs on momentary jobs who would earn them 120+ bucks a day...many others are lazy as hell and don't accept nothing that won't fit their idea of what a real standard of living is. Another problem is that kids are kinda ignorant and stupid here and study the easiest ####### in college just to get a piece of paper that will reveal to be useless once they join the other side... and get deep in debt too for that. Pretty smart ha? .In a nation that desperately needs engineers,technicians and scientists that can really be a problem. Then of course, there are also those who are willing to to do and are unlucky and they have all my support and respect; so I'd say that the loser mentallity of "there are no jobs" should DRASTICALLY be reviewed. Don't EVER listen to anyone that will try to put negative thoughts in your head or discourage you in any way..

- the country is huge and very diverse and there's not an homogenous mentallity. I find that a big advantage when people aren't the same or think the same everywhere you go.It gives you choice

- I disagree about your drastic point of view about Politics..more and more people are realizing that the Republicans/Democrats duality is only a divide and conquer technique created by the real manipulators and they're progressively going for more moderate candidates who know their stuff (like Ron Paul for example). There's still some work to do in that sense but I believe Americans are on the right track

- Beautiful and breathtaking places EVERYWHERE

Cons:

- widespread religious lunatism which is the second biggest cancer here,after the Federal Reserve..luckly not all states are affected by it though

- The health care system is simply primitive. Top quality care but unaffordable unless you have a job. There's something terribly wrong when a doctor gets rich at the expenses of someone else's life.

Having said that I hope all will go well for you guys whatever your future common decisions will be

Edited December 8, 2011 by Max1gk

[Max1gk 68]

Spend some time here, my wife came to US -some stuff different, but all in all great. Eric, be honest with her, you fell in love with her not he USA. Everyone can work if you want it. Good Luck.

[intx13 5]

I'm sure you're not the only one. Even for people who find that the US offers them better opportunities, emigrating from your home country means leaving friends, family, workplace, and potentially everything you're used to. I'm sure uncertainty is common.

That said, be sure of your desires before going through the visa process. There's one couple on here that were denied a visa; the wife, when interviewed, answered (among other red flags) that she wasn't sure if she wanted to move to the US or not. I'm sure the interviewer thought "if you don't want to move to the US, why are you applying to immigrate?"

Immigrating doesn't mean you have to start the "USA! USA!" chant or think that the US provides a person with better opportunities for personal happiness than does your home country. But it does mean that you intend to establish permanent residence in the US. Your reason for that is love: love for your spouse, not necessarily love for the US government.

[Laure&Colin 557]

I don't really know how to start this but i have to say this,

am i alone in in having reservations about moving to the US with my wife i honestly think we would have a better life here in the UK for one we won't ever have to worry about going bankrupt through medical bills also i earn far more than i ever could in the USA my wifes family works pretty much 24/7 on a couple of jobs just to keep their heads above water also i really don't like the American work culture as in live to work rather than work to live maybe i have just seen the negitive side of being in america but to be honest i'm scared about our future life i also don't like the fact that there is no middle ground there as far as politics go i neither agre with the left or right of politics but in the USA there is no middle party

sorry about lack of punctuation

yours eric

I understand your reservations, but I think you're not seeing the reality as it is about money issues in the US. People who have to work 24/7 to join both ends are usually huge spenders, with a dreadful credit (not all of them of course, but a lot). If you start your life there without debt (student loan or big fat mortgage), and if you're not an avid consumer, you'll be really fine. You can fulfill your basic needs with a handful of bucks: food, gas, electricity, etc... all that is SO much cheaper in the US than in Europe!

The lack of medical insurance is an issue, but that's the thing worth investing into if your job doesn't provide one. You'll be saving money on other things compared to your life in the UK. Plus wages are high, I don't know compared to the UK, but compared to France, it's quite unbelievable : a brand new teacher with no exprience gets paid more than a French teacher will make after 20 years. The median salary is uncomparable. Yat my in-laws get shocked when they come here and they see how high prices are.

As for the work culture, I thought the same, and then visited my in-laws a few times, just to discover that somehow, they all make it home a lot earlier than me every evening... The 2 weeks vacation sounds awful when I have 9 now, but there's a lot of holidays.

When you're sick, you can use a sick day without necessary having to go to the doctor : in France, you need a doctor note from the first day, and legally your employer doesn't have to pay you (unless branch agreements require it). Etc, etc...

What I'm more concerned about is rampant violence and so many guns being around, but making enough for a living, absolutely not. The job market is more flexible and if you want to work, you can find something.

Edited December 8, 2011 by Laure&Colin