Living In America

BACKGROUND

Living and working in America - it can be done, but there are are some things that you should know before you start looking, and for when you arrive. I relocated from Cheltenham to Walnut Creek, CA (in the San Francisco Bay area) in May 2000, and although the move was fairly smooth there are a lot of things that I wish I had know about before I started off on this adventure.

This page is a collection of ideas and points of information that I have collected since I arrived. It is very specific to moving from the UK, and fairly specific to moving to California, but a lot of what is here should be general enough to apply to anyone considering the move.

DISCLAIMER

I am not an immigration attorney, a recruitment consultant or a tax advisor! The information presented here is correct to the best of my knowledge as of the date it was uploaded. If you need clarification of anything here, check the links in each section.

FINDING A JOB

The easiest way to find a job is to try one (or all) of these web sites :

• www.monster.com
• www.computerjobs.com
• www.hotjobs.com
• www.headhunter.net
• www.brassring.com
• www.dice.com

These sites allow you to search for jobs in any area of the country, and with any given skill set. A lot of the jobs that you see will say 'US Citizen of Permanent Resident Only'. As the visa process can take two to three months to complete. companies looking for a quick starter will not go to the trouble of sponsoring a visa. computerjobs.com does allow you to filter for visa sponsors.

VISAS

If you want to work here, you need a working visa. The most popular way of doing this is the H1-B visa which allows you to stay for three years with an optional extension for a further three years. You can use this time to apply for a Green Card which will allow you to stay indefinately. To get an H1-B visa you must be sponsored by an employer who you will work for when you arrive. You can only work for that company, unless you can find another company who will transfer the visa and assume sponsorship. There is an annual quota of H1-B visas, with the allocation starting in October each year. Once the quota runs out, no more visas are issued until the next quota period starts, so the best time to come over is between October and February. Your employer will also need to sponsor you for your Green Card, and this process can take three years or longer. One thing that isn't very widely broadcast is that once you start your Green Card application, if you change employers you go straight to the back of the queue and your application period starts again, so once you decide you are going for the Green Card you are stuck with your current job for the duration of the process.

An alternative to the H1-B visa is the little-used Treaty Trader or E visa. This allows a citizen of the United Kingdom (or any other country that has a treaty with the USA) to work in the USA for a company in the USA that is owned by a company in the UK. There is no quota for the E visa, and the application process is a little quicker than for the H1-B visa. The E visa can be extended for up to seven years, compared to the H1-B's six years. The number of UK owned companies is fairly small, but one possible option is to work through a recruitment company that us UK owned. I work as a consultant through a company call IPS which is owned by Eurolink in the UK. That allows me to work on the E visa while I look for a job that will sponsor me for the H1-B and eventually for a Green Card.

Both types of visa allow you to bring over members of your immediate family, but they only allow you to work. If your spouse wants to get a job, they will either have to get their own working visa, or wait until you get a Green Card.

Immigration And Naturalisation Service - www.ins.gov
International Programming and Systems - www.ipsamerica.com

ON ARRIVAL

When you arrive, there are a few things that you need to sort out in the first few days. Most important is your Social Security number. Nothing happens here without you being asked to produce your SSN. The application procedure is very simple - a single form which you fill in and present together with your passport and visa at the nearest Social Security Administration office. The number is sent to you within a few weeks.

If you have family with you, go to the Internal Revenue Service office and fill out a W-7 form for each member. This will get them a Tax ID number which is essential for filing taxes. As your family members cannot get SSNs, they need these Tax IDs to be declared as dependants on your tax return.

Social Security Administration - www.ssa.gov

CREDIT

When you arrive you will need to open a bank account to receive your paychecks, get an apartment to live in, get a telephone service, cable TV, a loan for a car, etc. All these things require a good credit history, and as a new arrival in the USA you have NO HISTORY. Telephone, utility and cable companies will normally supply you with service if you pay a small deposit, and you can use your prompt payment of their bills to start building a credit history. It is critically important that you pay all of your bills in good time during your first year. When I arrived it took a good six months of paying on time before I had enough credit history to get a car loan. Once you have a loan, it becomes easier to get more credit, and you will suddenly find yourself swamped with junk mail from credit card companies.

It makes sense to get at least one US credit card, and most credit card companies provide secured cards. These allow you to put down a deposit (say $1000) which becomes your credit limit. If you pay your bills on time and stay within your limit, after a certain period of time your limit will be raised and you will get your deposit back. But beware, credit cards can have a nasty sting in the tail. Some advertise APRs of 9.9%, but if you make one late payment the APR jumps to 29.9%!

It is a good idea to keep at least one credit card from the UK active and transfer money back to pay the balance. The fact that you have UK credit may be accepted by some credit unions, and it gives you a source of credit while you wait for your bank account and credit cards to be set up in the USA.

HOUSING

America is a very transient society. People move all the time, so there is always a ready supply of apartments available to rent. Rents vary greatly by location, so check out the links below for examples. If you have pets, you will find it very difficult, or very expensive, to get a rental apartment. Houses to rent are available, and tend to cost less per month than apartments, but you will normally have to put down a hefty deposit.

Don't even think about buying until you have been here for three years. You need a very good credit rating to score a mortgage, typically a car loan, a couple of credit cards with low outstanding balances and three years of prompt bill payment.

www.rentnet.com
www.aplacetorent.com

TAXES

Keep receipts for everything! The tax system is incredibly complicated, but things are made slightly easier by programs like TurboTax which take you quickly through your tax return. During your first tax year in the USA you will be considered Dual-Status if you have spent more than six months in the country, otherwise you will be considered Non-Resident. Non-Residents can't claim much in the way of deductions, so it is best to arrive before June if you can do so. Taxes are withheld from your paycheck each month by your employer (this is very similar to PAYE) and the final figures at the end of the year are given to you on a W2 form (similar to a P60). You will be able to write off your removal expenses, and the cost of flights, etc from the UK, so make sure you keep the receipts handy.

Internal Revenue Service - www.irs.gov

BANKS

The banking system in the USA is a little strange when compared to the system in the UK. There are a few big banks that cover the whole country (Wells Fargo, Bank of America, etc) and a lot of small regional banks. The big banks are not exactly hostile, but you will get better service at one of the smaller, regional banks. I chose Washington Mutual (WaMu) which operates throughout the west coast, and their customer service is excellent. WaMu make a big deal about their free checking - as long as you have your salary deposited directly into your account, you won't pay any charges for writing checks or using an ATM card for transactions. Another good thing to consider is Credit Unions. These are similar to Building Societies in the UK, and they offer some very good deals. There loans are normally at lower rates than you would get in a bank, and they tend to accept people that the banks would turn away. Gaining access to a Credit Union can be tricky, as they are often limited to people who work for a particular company, or live in a particular geographic area, but you should be able to find one that will take you in.

Washington Mutual Bank - www.wamu.com
Meriwest Credit Union (Northern California) - www.meriwest.com
Columbia Credit Union (South Washington) - www.columbiacu.com

ELECTRICAL

Most of your computer equipment should work OK over here, as most PCs have a power supply that will switch from UK 240V to US 110V. When I came over I had to leave behind an old 15" monitor and a HP LaserJet 4L that would not switch to work here.

TV and Video standards are different as well. Leave you TV behind, as it almost certainly won't work here. If your VCR/DVD will output NTSC as well as PAL, bring it with you and it should work fine. If your VCR/DVD will read NTSC tapes or Region 1 discs, you can still bring it with you and either get a TV here that accepts PAL signals, or get a converter box for around $200 that converts your PAL output to NTSC.

Be prepared to replace all of you kitchen electricals, as they almost certainly won't switch to the voltage here. Kitchen appliances are much cheaper here, so this shouldn't be too much of a loss.

SHOPS

You will find a lot of shops here that are familiar from the UK high street. Burger King, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Toy-R-Us, Gap, Starbucks, Staples, Office Max, etc.

This is a quick translation table for other stores :

USEFUL BOOKS

Relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area and Silicon Valley by Cristina Guinot. Very specific to the Bay Area, this book includes a city-by-city guide to the area with a detailed breakdown of each area.

Living and Working in America by Steve Mills - Good general purpose reference

Live and Work in the USA and Canada by Adam Lechmere and Susan Catto - Good general purpose reference