Advice needed regarding type of visa for fastest results

[slaveofconvention 0]

I have spent the last 2 days reading dozens of (often out of date) pages on different visa options and have finally decided just to ask and hope I won't be dismissed as too lazy to do my own research as I am suddenly and unexpectedly in a hurry...

I am a UK citizen, and currently live in the UK. My wife is a US citizen and we have been married just over 11 years (and not sure it matters but have a 5 year old son who is fully registered with the US consulate here in the UK)

I have just received a completely unexpected job offer in the USA - literally been "headhunted" after a throwaway comment to someone I have had a business relationship with for over 4 years.

What will be the quickest way for me to get to the USA and take this job (I understand there are no guarantees with any process, just asking for opinions)

I have read something about EADs for Spouses which do not confer Indefinite leave to remain, or permanent residence, and also about a normal spousal visa which brings with it the right to work.  I am concerned about the medical side of the spousal visa as I have been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and am worried that avenue may not be the easiest/fastest (or even possible) with the rules about possibly becoming a drain on the US so I was wondering if there was a nonimmigrant way forward or if I should just try the regular immigrant visa route.

We do have some savings and the job carries a first offer of around $48k so I think we're covered from a financial restrictions point of view - I also have no doubt my sister-in-law or potential employer would be willing to offer support if needed to tick any boxes in that regard.

Going to stop typing now so you guys don't get bored and skip over the post lol but feel free to ask for any additional information and I will do my best to provide it.

Edited April 8, 2018 by slaveofconvention
added "potential" to employer just for accuracy

[slaveofconvention 0]

Again pretty sure it doesn't matter but the Kane, PA details on my profile relate to where my wife was originally from - this job offer in in Louisiana

[Boiler 46,310]

Your wife filing for you to immigrate, aka here DCF would be far the fastest.

 

$48k doesn't sound that much, you need to check the benefits which should include decent Health Insurance. Make sure it kicks in from day one.

[slaveofconvention 0]

Thanks for the quick reply.

The details are yet to be ironed out - they have said they will cover half of my insurance but will do more checking to see what that would need to be.  I did read something about the sponsor (ie US Citizen Wife) needing to be resident in the USA - she can always come back first and stay with her sister (ironically we JUST sold the house she had in the states this year) but with our 5 year old in the picture we'd prefer to spend as little time apart as possible as one of us would obviously be away from him irrespective of if he stayed with me or came over with her.

As for the $48k, it is a lot more than I get right now and getting my wife back to the USA is also a big bonus. When we first got married I made it clear to her that we would have to live in the UK until my son from a previous relationship was old enough to travel back and forth etc - he's now 21 so that's no longer an issue.

Edited April 8, 2018 by slaveofconvention
courtesy!

[slaveofconvention 0]

Sorry to keep adding info piece by piece but I am still researching myself and found another page which mentioned something about where we were married - if it matters to any of this, we were married in the US in New York back in April of 2007

[Boiler 46,310]

Low salary, poor Health Insurance and major medical issues.

 

Suggest you consider carefully.

 

[JFH 12,191]

DCF is an option for you. I will move this thread to the DCF part of the forum. Read through those threads. The process will take around 3 or 4 months, all being well with your paperwork - start ordering a long-form birth certificate, an ACRO police certificate, previous divorce decree(s) for both of you already. With DCF you don't have to spend any time apart but your wife MUST demonstrate intention to re-establish domicile in the USA. Has she been filing taxes whilst overseas? If not, you need to get that squared away very quickly. It's unlikely she will owe anything but she must file. To show intent to re-establish domicile she can provide evidence of having located a place to live, put a deposit on a flat, made enquiries about schooling for your child, applied for jobs, got a bank account, etc. Anything that shows she is making concrete steps to return to the USA permanently. 

 

Now, regarding the job. I appreciate its more than you are making now but it's very low wage for the USA. Even for the south. They are paying half yoir healthcare? That will still leave you needing to foot the bill for the other half plus your wife and child. And this is just the monthly premiums. Expect to be paying around $300 a month for the other half that the company is not paying (I'm basing that on my husband's company and wgat we pay ax they also only pay half). That still leaves deductibles and co-pays to pay (for a family of three could being the region of $5000 a year). 

 

We live in the Pacific Northwest so our cost of living is slightly higher than yours but I make just over $72,000 a year. My husband is on minimum wage so $32,000. We have no children or pets. Our rent and utilities come to $1435 a month (and we are spoiled - 6.5 acres in the beautiful Cascade Mountains). Car insurance for 2 cars (yes, you will need to run 2 cars) is $188 a month and neither of us have had an accident. Husband has been driving for 35 years and me 27 years. Food is much more expensive here. Good food, that is. Bad food is cheaper than the U.K. but good food is a lot more expensive. There is no bread here that's edible for less than $5 a loaf. I can easily spend $150 a week on a regular shop for the 2 of us and that's using coupons, etc. Petrol is cheaper but you will be driving more. I drive around 400 miles a week to and from work. Utilities are a lot more than back home. You will need that air conditioning on day and night. And don't get me started on phones and Internet. I paid £40 a month for 100 Mbps with phone and tv in the U.K. Here we pay $135 a month and we are lucky if we get up to 15 Mbps. We live in a state with no income tax but our sales tax is therefore higher than most. Even with the money we make we are by no means rich. We are comfortable. We go out to eat once a week, if either of us needs a new pair of shoes or some clothes we don't have to worry about whether we can afford it, we can pursue our hobbies - art and music - without worrying about the cost of equipment, we travel, have the occasional night in a hotel just for so,thing different, that sort of thing. I can't begin to imagine trying to support a family of 3 on $48k. I could probably go it if I had to but it's not the lifestyle I want and I certainly wouldn't leave England for it. You were head-hunted for this role? Probably because no one locally would even consider it. It's almost poverty. 

 

The good old news is, as the spouse of a USC coming here with an immigrant visa you are a permanent resident immediately. You don't have to take that job. You can take almost any job in the country. Doesn't even have to be Louisiana or Pennsylvania. The only jobs permant residents cannot do are a few federal government roles that require the individual to be a USC. I would give that job offer a wide berth and look around. You'll find better, I'm sure. I applied for my job before I left the U.K. and started work here less than 2 weeks after I arrived. 

[pushbrk 13,191]

If you are "head-hunted" then the Company has options for work related visas too.  Otherwise, the IR-1 visa route through Direct Filing with the USCIS field office in London is the way to go.  I assume you are adult enough to make your own financial decisions, so won't go into that.  Anything you are reading that indicates it matters where you were married, relates to the obsolete K3 visa, which (even when available) was never as fast as a Direct Filing abroad.

[BlueDevil1442 23]

Here is a good post on DCF filing countries. http://www.lovevisalife.com/direct-consular-filing-countries-general/