Information on moving to the US.

I am an 18 year old Canadian citizen. I am looking to move to the US in any way possible, I have a girlfriend that lives in Wisconsin, which is where I'd be moving to. I have no degrees or job offers....

Canadian Expatriate and Travellers Forum Index -> Canadians in the USA -> US Visas and Immigration

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Bennybennerson
New Member

Joined: 17 Jun 2008
Posts: 1
Location: Canada, BC.

Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 10:39 am

I am an 18 year old Canadian citizen. I am looking to move to the US in any way possible, I have a girlfriend that lives in Wisconsin, which is where I'd be moving to. I have no degrees or job offers. I'm looking to preferably get a work permit, how would I go about doing this?

Thanks

CMac83
Junior Member

Joined: 15 Jun 2008
Posts: 11

Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 1:09 pm

Honestly, I'm not sure it's possible. I have a 2-year diploma and a job offer, and I'm still having enormous troubles getting a work Visa. Without a degree or job offer, I don't see how it could happen.

Your best bet might be to research what jobs have "a shortage of available U.S. workers", and then see if you can qualify for one of those. Failing that, if you have the available funds, you might want to think about enrolling in a college in the U.S. At least you could be there temporarily for a couple of years while you went to school. Plus, I think you can get a work permit if you're a student (F-1 status, I think?). Good luck.

Steven
CanuckAbroad VIP

Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 1128
Location: Calgary

Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:27 pm

Even if you had a job offer, in a non-professional position it would be very difficult to get into the US legally.

The advice above about shortage of workers only helps with the labour certification, you need the visa and there isn't one, except maybe EB-3 unskilled, and they're currently processing applications for that one received at the start of 2003: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4252.html

Going to college in the US is probably the best bet, if you've got the money. F-1. Must be "full-time" study. You can get a work permit for 20 hours work per week in a field of work related to the course of study when you're in F-1 status. Plus at the end of the course you can get a work permit for one year.
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Steve.