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I wanted to tag this as Europe for maximum irony, to prove my worthiness as a dry-humoured Brit. I came to the old London meetup thread with questions in 2011 when I had the urge to move to England for grad school, and I ended up living in London from 2012-2014. Thanks! Without going into all the details, it's 5 years on and I've never really gotten over having to leave England. I've been working in my field back in the US after finishing grad school, but at the moment I'm in a bit of a transitional phase. If I were to drop everything and move tomorrow, I wouldn't mind a bit. So that seems like a good sign. I've considered applying to a PhD programme, but I work in the arts and it's not 100% necessary to teach at university level and the extra debt would torpedo me for life. Well, that's already happened with my Master's, so I'd be double torpedoed. Which leaves simply packing up and immigrating to England's welcoming arms, as an enthusiastic Anglophile and holder of a UK Masters degree. How do I do this? I've been looking as the UK's visa and immigration site and there doesn't seem to be any sort of route to residency that involves showing up without employer sponsorship or a student visa. Surely there must be some way to do that? Is there an immigration lottery? I'd prefer to not go the sham marriage route, but I guess I'm not too proud. I'm a photographer, but I don't do it commercially. At least not to the extent where I could support myself as a freelancer abroad. As my day job, I teach art photography. US citizen, born and raised on the East Coast, living in San Francisco for the last 20 years. I've never felt quite so "at home" as when I lived in London. I'd like to get back. I'll be a good addition to England, I promise. I even like your food.
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Mar 22, 2019 02:49
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I don't think there's a single country in the world that will let Americans get residency without a reason for being there, such as a job, school, or marriage. Or being filthy loving rich, and that's only some countries. Like your plan is the equivalent of illegally immigrating to the US with no job and deciding that you neeed to live in San Francisco. Xun fucked around with this message at 17:14 on Mar 23, 2019 |
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Mar 23, 2019 17:12
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Become a: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIPvljWfH00 If that doesn't work, call someone to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP5Xv7QqXiM Just don't come back crying: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TbfQPRgcS8 hth
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Mar 23, 2019 17:42
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McMadCow posted:I wanted to tag this as Europe for maximum irony, to prove my worthiness as a dry-humoured Brit. Join the US military, complete your term, then join the Australian military (they pay well for this) and use Commonwealth residency to get yourself to the UK. Eight years maybe, plus reserve obligations.
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Mar 23, 2019 17:45
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Xun posted:I don't think there's a single country in the world that will let Americans get residency without a reason for being there, such as a job, school, or marriage. Or being filthy loving rich, and that's only some countries. Well no, I'm not looking to illegally immigrate to the UK. Lots of people immigrate to the US from all over the world as part of an incoming queue/lottery. That's what I want to do, but to England. There's at least a process in place in the US- it seems pretty opaque of such a thing exists for England. I must say, I didn't realize that Americans were kept OUT of the immigration queue around the world.  madeintaipei posted:Join the US military, complete your term, then join the Australian military (they pay well for this) and use Commonwealth residency to get yourself to the UK. Eight years maybe, plus reserve obligations. This would be the perfect plan if I wasn't already 42, and thus ineligible to join the US military, even as an officer.
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Mar 24, 2019 00:56
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McMadCow posted:Well no, I'm not looking to illegally immigrate to the UK. Lots of people immigrate to the US from all over the world as part of an incoming queue/lottery. That's what I want to do, but to England. There's at least a process in place in the US- it seems pretty opaque of such a thing exists for England. Okay so, the reason why I compared it to illegal immigration and the reason why it's obscure is that it doesn't exist. I think the best you can do is try to find an employer that will sponsor you. I also know an ex freelancer who used to hop countries every couple of months so if you think you can make enough to support that you might be able to spend a lot of time in the UK? Also Americans aren't specifically kept out of other countries, those types of agreements are reciprocal and the US has never had any interest in signing one.
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Mar 24, 2019 01:25
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Xun posted:Okay so, the reason why I compared it to illegal immigration and the reason why it's obscure is that it doesn't exist. I think the best you can do is try to find an employer that will sponsor you. I also know an ex freelancer who used to hop countries every couple of months so if you think you can make enough to support that you might be able to spend a lot of time in the UK? Despite my experience and the graduate degree, I don't really do any commercial photography. I'm a teacher at the continuing ed/higher ed level, but art teachers don't get sponsored for visas. Also, I think the sort of freelancer-travels-the-world kind of situation you're describing is for people with clients in their home country. Being a freelancer with clients in your visiting country requires a work visa or an exemption on a spouse visa, as is the case here in the US. The woman I interned for is restricted to freelance work on her husband's visa. Possibly I could get a freelance visa to do commercial photography in the UK, but that wouldn't make a lot of sense as there are plenty of those people there already. But maybe it's work looking into. I have almost no commercial resume to offer as proof though.
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Mar 24, 2019 06:03
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Xun posted:I don't think there's a single country in the world that will let Americans get residency without a reason for being there, such as a job, school, or marriage. Or being filthy loving rich, and that's only some countries. Svalbard! Sure, there might not be any real jobs there and it's a miserable place to live, but you can live and work there without pesky visa issues!
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Mar 24, 2019 13:53
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Original_Z posted:Svalbard! Sure, there might not be any real jobs there and it's a miserable place to live, but you can live and work there without pesky visa issues! Svalbard is going to be a literal paradise next to a post hard Brexit London 
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Mar 24, 2019 17:05
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(1) get a job, it's what i'm trying to do and i'm even engaged to one of them. Are you on jobs.ac.uk? (2) stop spelling poo poo like they do and stop using their syntax and word choice. they can tell the difference between real and fake and they hate fake (3) don't brag about a UK MA. they will give you one for free, no work required, for graduating undergrad and remaining alive for 8 years (3a) for that matter don't brag about anything, they think it's gross HEY GUNS fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Mar 24, 2019 |
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Mar 24, 2019 18:46
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McMadCow posted:Well no, I'm not looking to illegally immigrate to the UK. Lots of people immigrate to the US from all over the world as part of an incoming queue/lottery. That's what I want to do, but to England. There's at least a process in place in the US- it seems pretty opaque of such a thing exists for England. You can't just go immigrate to any country you want. Nowhere on earth is this a thing. You need a job or a marriage or to be there for school or go somewhere with a pre-existing immigration agreement with your own country. Or be a refugee. Or be independently wealthy. Even the US immigration lottery is based on letting in amounts of people previously underrepresented in the immigration lottery itself. Again - countries don't just let people in.
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Mar 24, 2019 18:54
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Basically, hang around in bars looking for slightly-desperate-looking 39 year old women with bad teeth.
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Mar 24, 2019 18:59
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if you have a business idea and are good at bullshitting you can become an entrepreneur and legally live in the Netherlands courtesy of the DAFT (Dutch American Friendship Treaty). then you'll become a Dutch person and have EU citizenship, so you'll just need to wait a couple years and then find a Brit who looks like you who is looking to escape, and trade identities with them.
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Mar 24, 2019 19:30
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HEY GUNS posted:(3) don't brag about a UK MA. they will give you one for free, no work required, for graduating undergrad and remaining alive for 8 years This one only works for Oxbridge and it still costs £20 or so. Most MAs here are the real deal, which is why the fake Oxbridge ones are supposed to have (Oxon) or (Cantab) after them. OP, I think you might be a bit deluded as to how easy it is to just rock up to any First World country and that absolutely includes the US. Also I'm not sure what 'Commonwealth residency' is supposed to be, this isn't 1900, you cant just swan about the Empire as you please.
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Mar 24, 2019 19:48
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Realistically, your only option is to find a job that will sponsor you for a visa and while you are here, use your charm to find someone to marry you and get a marriage visa. I guess that you have looked at the UK gov website: https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-general There are some jobs that are considered especially in demand in case you could retrain to take one of them https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-k-shortage-occupation-list Other option is to see yourself to a big multinational corporation with offices in the UK & USA, work your way up the greasy pole and hope to get transferred.
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Mar 24, 2019 21:16
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feedmegin posted:This one only works for Oxbridge and it still costs £20 or so. Most MAs here are the real deal, which is why the fake Oxbridge ones are supposed to have (Oxon) or (Cantab) after them. op, i have studied what i have studied for eight years, i am engaged to one of them, and they STILL throw my application out before the interview stage as soon as i click the box labeled "I do not currently have the right to work in the uk". what makes you think you do not deserve to get in loving line?
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Mar 24, 2019 22:34
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HEY GUNS posted:i was wondering when the negaverse me would show up, hi feedmegin  did not know you're looking to move here btw. If you end up going for FLR(M) instead let me know and I can give you the low down. 
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Mar 24, 2019 22:39
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feedmegin posted:
it all depends on where i get hired
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Mar 24, 2019 22:41
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HEY GUNS posted:what makes you think you do not deserve to get in loving line? Actually, "getting in line" is exactly what I'm trying to figure out how to do...?
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Mar 24, 2019 23:10
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There is no line. You could try to get a work visum but you need your employer to sponsor you, and then they have to convince the government there's no one in the UK or the EU who can do what they want to ship you in for. There's also the issue of brexit. You could also try to get in on a student visa but studying in the UK isn't cheap, and there's no guaranteed pay off in the form of a job at the end of it. There's also the issue of brexit. If you want to live in a place like London you should give up on the real thing, and move to a better place in the US. Dance Officer fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Mar 26, 2019 |
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Mar 26, 2019 13:21
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Dance Officer posted:There is no line. You could try to get a work visum but you need your employer to sponsor you, and then they have to convince the government there's no one in the UK or the EU who can do what they want to ship you in for. There's also the issue of brexit. Ironically, Brexit might if anything make both of these easier for an American citizen, but even everything else apart it would be worth waiting a few weeks to see how that all pans out and what shape it takes. Things are a teeny bit unstable in that regard just at the minute.
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Mar 26, 2019 16:37
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Is it going to make things easier though? I thought a bunch of big companies are leaving and not taking all of their employees with them
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Mar 26, 2019 16:49
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Xun posted:Is it going to make things easier though? I thought a bunch of big companies are leaving and not taking all of their employees with them The combination of the pound sinking lower than the London Underground and massive shortages of consumer goods means that the OP will be welcomed with open arms as long as he brings chocolate, chewing gum and pairs of nylons.
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Mar 26, 2019 16:59
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Xun posted:Is it going to make things easier though? I thought a bunch of big companies are leaving and not taking all of their employees with them Dude's a photographer, not an investment banker or a car factory worker. We're not at the 'mass unemployment for everyone' stage here (yet).
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Mar 26, 2019 17:17
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feedmegin posted:Dude's a photographer, not an investment banker or a car factory worker. We're not at the 'mass unemployment for everyone' stage here (yet). Is there a huge shortage of art photography teachers in the UK? That seems like a very small market that could be easily filled with local applicants.
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Mar 26, 2019 19:29
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NihilismNow posted:Is there a huge shortage of art photography teachers in the UK? That seems like a very small market that could be easily filled with local applicants. I'm sure it is, and it's not going to get him a work visa, but he's at least no worse off in that respect after leaving the EU.
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Mar 26, 2019 20:01
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NihilismNow posted:Is there a huge shortage of art photography teachers in the UK? That seems like a very small market that could be easily filled with local applicants. No shortage. And even though I have some university teaching experience on my resume' here, it's not a lot. Arts faculty positions are the same in the UK as they are in the US; lots of adjunct positions and only one or two actual full-time hires. It's only the established artists that get the opportunity to get sponsored by a school for an overseas posting. EDIT: That said, I'm still applying to every relevant teaching position in the UK. 
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Mar 27, 2019 03:12
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McMadCow posted:US citizen, born and raised on the East Coast, living in San Francisco for the last 20 years. I've never felt quite so "at home" as when I lived in London. I'd like to get back. Have you considered the possibility that you are basing this on the time in your life when you were doing a masters in a subject you loved, surrounded by like minded people, with relatively few day to day worries and a clear sense of your immediate goals and purpose?
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Mar 27, 2019 18:08
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Mr Enderby posted:Have you considered the possibility that you are basing this on the time in your life when you were doing a masters in a subject you loved, surrounded by like minded people, with relatively few day to day worries and a clear sense of your immediate goals and purpose? I have considered that, thank you. I've also made steps to advance my career and my life here for the past five years. At this particular moment I'm looking to make the next step, and I have the freedom to leave.
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Mar 27, 2019 19:24
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feedmegin posted:I'm sure it is, and it's not going to get him a work visa, but he's at least no worse off in that respect after leaving the EU.
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Mar 27, 2019 20:12
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Some years ago there was an A/T thread from an Argentinian who wanted to move to London to be an actor. Everybody shat on the idea, but I do believe he went ahead and moved there. Does anyone remember that and know what happened after?
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Mar 28, 2019 11:16
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Used to be you could trace back your ancestry and see if you might already unknowingly qualify for citizenship in an EU country, Germany for instance has very broad jus sanguinis rules. But presumably Brexit will be putting the kibosh on that route.
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Mar 28, 2019 15:44
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P-Mack posted:Used to be you could trace back your ancestry and see if you might already unknowingly qualify for citizenship in an EU country, Germany for instance has very broad jus sanguinis rules. But presumably Brexit will be putting the kibosh on that route. are you thinking of Italy? last I looked into it (which I admit was some time ago) Germany only offers citizenship to people with one or both German parents, not people who just has some German ancestry Earwicker fucked around with this message at 16:51 on Mar 28, 2019 |
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Mar 28, 2019 16:48
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Earwicker posted:are you thinking of Italy? last I looked into it (which I admit was some time ago) Germany only offers citizenship to people with one or both German parents, not people who just has some German ancestry Right but the parent may likewise be a German citizen without realizing it if they have a direct patrilineal ancestor as far back as the Second Reich. It was German father only until the 70s so my mother who left before then never realized her kids qualified. I guess I'm technically a draft dodger now but I probably wouldn't get arrested like that poor Korean kid did. But yeah I think you're right, Italy is easier but I don't know the details. Just options on the table for OP depending how Brexit goes.
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Mar 28, 2019 17:28
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P-Mack posted:Right but the parent may likewise be a German citizen without realizing it if they have a direct patrilineal ancestor as far back as the Second Reich. It was German father only until the 70s so my mother who left before then never realized her kids qualified. I guess I'm technically a draft dodger now but I probably wouldn't get arrested like that poor Korean kid did. My great grandparents on my mom's side are Irish, Scottish, and English. From what I've been able to tell, it used to be the thing in Ireland that if you have a grandparent born there, you can return. My mom was actually thinking of doing that, but even that route has been severely restricted to retirement age, and now even that comes with a huge financial requirement that I don't think she can meet. And of course that doesn't help me regardless.
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Mar 28, 2019 17:37
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The Irish economy is also looking to be hit very hard by brexit.
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Mar 29, 2019 13:37
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McMadCow posted:Actually, "getting in line" is exactly what I'm trying to figure out how to do...?
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Mar 29, 2019 23:57
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or you can marry a british person
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Mar 30, 2019 00:03
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Earwicker posted:or you can marry a british person
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Mar 30, 2019 00:16
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HEY GUNS posted:You can do that by getting on websites like jobs.ac.uk and talking to your advisors and former classmates about potential job openings. I'm currently applying to two teaching positions. The likelihood of them leading to a sponsored visa are one in a zillion, but I'm doing it anyway. The purpose of the thread was to get a general lay of the land on the immigration lottery.
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Mar 30, 2019 02:37
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