Julien from France

[JulienR 92]

Bonjour à tous,

 

My name is Julien and I live in the Paris area with my wife (US citizen) and two kids. I have been on the forum for a couple of months already and it has proved a valuable source of information.

 

My wife and I met in Brisbane, Australia where we were both living in 2011 and we got married in 2013. Our first child was born in 2015 and, while living in Australia was great, we felt that it was too far from our respective families. So we decided to move back and I got a good job opportunity in France in June 2016. We thought my wife would be able to find a job speaking only english at first and learning french on the way. It hasn't worked that way so my wife stayed at home looking after our boy and taking french lessons. Our second child was born in 2017. Now we have realised that, without speaking french, it will be very difficult for her to find a job in her field, and without a job it will be very difficult for her to become fluent in french as she spends most of her time looking after the kids. So we decided to move again, this time to the US. We filed I-130 petition with USCIS at the end of Januray and were sent to Nebraska SC 😞 . in the meantime we have both been looking for jobs in th US in hope of speeding up the process. Luckily, there is an opportunity for me to transfer to my company in the US. So I am planning to apply for an L1B visa and file for AOS once in the US since the L1 visa allows to do so even if it's a non-immigrant visa.

 

Best of luck to everyone.

[jkstark 97]

On a completely immigration un-related item, but something that came to mind...  My parents lived in France for the better part of 20 years, and though my mother had reasonable French language skills from her years in school that she was able to hone to be able to live comfortably, my father had never learned the language.  At one point, he enrolled in a week long immersive French language course that was held at a "resort" somewhere, and where they were prohibited from speaking anything but French.  Surprisingly, especially considering his age at the time, he came back from there speaking reasonable French, and was able to continue learning just from daily interactions.

 

I don't think that it was quite the level of an immersive experience that the Légion étrangère puts recruits through, but still very effective...

 

Good luck!

[USS_Voyager 1,972]

13 minutes ago, JulienR said:

So I am planning to apply for an L1B visa and file for AOS once in the US since the L1 visa allows to do so even if it's a non-immigrant visa.

 

Just curious, so you're AOS-ing based on the I-130 or the I-140, I assume the I-130 cause the PD will be immediately? Yes, you're correct since the L1 visa is dual intent, so you are allowed to have immigration intent. You can continue to work in your L1 job up until the AOS is approved and you receive the green card, without having to apply for EAD. However, a separate EAD and AP is recommended anyways as back-up and since those are free with the AOS

[TBoneTX 45,264]

Welcome to the forum.

[JulienR 92]

15 hours ago, USS_Voyager said:

Just curious, so you're AOS-ing based on the I-130 or the I-140, I assume the I-130 cause the PD will be immediately? Yes, you're correct since the L1 visa is dual intent, so you are allowed to have immigration intent. You can continue to work in your L1 job up until the AOS is approved and you receive the green card, without having to apply for EAD. However, a separate EAD and AP is recommended anyways as back-up and since those are free with the AOS

We will do the AOS based on the already file I-130, our priority date is February 6 and given the evidence we have I don't see any reason for it being rejected. I wasn't planning to apply for EAD or AP as I thought you had to paid extra for that. Thanks for the information, one is never too carefull.

[Wuleii 1]

Hello! France is a beautiful country!

Edited April 16, 2019 by Wuleii

[JulienR 92]

3 hours ago, Wuleii said:

Hello! France is a beautiful country!

A bit less since Monday sadly. 

[millefleur 5,046]

38 minutes ago, JulienR said:

A bit less since Monday sadly. 

Poor France! I am so sad for your country and the French people, it's such a great loss...the spirit of Victor Hugo's love for the cathedral and the great spirit of the French people will help France to rebuild. Vive la France! 🇫🇷

 

Bienvenue à VJ! 😊

[KASH2011 382]

Welcome to VJ!

[X Factor 1,112]

Welcome to VJ

[JulienR 92]

I had my interview for an L1B visa at the Paris embassy yesterday and it was approved, yay! I will move with my family to Richmond, VA in the next few weeks, once my company sorts things out with their relocation partner.

[TBoneTX 45,264]

Congratulations!

[JulienR 92]

The movers are booked, I will fly to the US on September 15. My wife is already over there in her family with the kids so I was hoping to leave sooner but can't complain when some people here are separated for months or even years. I'll just try to enjoy the bachelor life for a bit 

[TBoneTX 45,264]

17 hours ago, JulienR said:

the bachelor life

This typically (OK, allegedly) involves blondes.

Best wishes for a smooth move.

[JulienR 92]

5 hours ago, TBoneTX said:

This typically (OK, allegedly) involves blondes.

Best wishes for a smooth move.

Don't tell my wife.

Thanks.