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This has probably already been asked before but I can't find it so apologise in advance.

I recently travelled to Florida on your typical theme parks holiday and I have fallen for the USA and have been wondering if it's possible for someone like me to be able to make the move!

I don't have a degree and I don't have sponsorship from a family member that lives there either.

I am from the UK and currently live in the UK I can obviously get an ESTA but I have nothing that can get me a green card.

Is it possible to go over on the 90 day waiver and gain work and stay there and get a green card?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Regards

James

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    I would exercise general caution against going on holiday and deciding to move to a place forever. Especially a place where there is political instability, an incredibly expensive healthcare system, increased gun violence, and a generally bad environment for immigrants. Especially if you don't have a degree, you'd be on the lower end of the totem pole if you did manage to get in.
    – la femme cosmique
    Commented Jul 5, 2018 at 12:35
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    And unfortunately, it's going to be difficult to move to the USA without a degree, a job willing to sponsor you (a timely and expensive thing for them), someone willing to marry you, or a good chunk of money you can invest. International dating sites might work though. Although if I could trade my US passport for your GB one, I totally would.
    – la femme cosmique
    Commented Jul 5, 2018 at 12:36
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    Since you mention ESTA, I would note that people who have entered the US under the visa waiver program (that is, using ESTA) cannot extend their stay. If under the VWP you can find an employer who will sponsor you, you will have to leave the US to apply for a visa. The only exception is for immediate relatives of US citizens, so if you enter under the VWP, fall in love, and get married, you may be able to stay. Even in the unlikely event that this happens in 90 days, the marriage would surely receive very close scrutiny from the government and the application would likely be rejected.
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 5, 2018 at 16:10

2 Answers 2

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The UK has some working holiday programs for young adults - but not with the U.S. (Would Canada suffice?) Otherwise, unless you have a valuable skill, a great deal of wealth, close family connections, or simply get lucky and win the so-called green card lottery (not an option for most UK citizens), no, you cannot simply settle in the United States because you want to. (Even citizens of the British Commonwealth, like Canadians and Australians, can't simply move to the U.K., even though their countries were formerly tightly politically connected to the United Kingdom in relatively recent times - in Canada as recently as 1982.)

Go to the U.S.'s immigration website and see if you qualify - but based on what you've stated in your question, it's highly unlikely that you would.

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    Someone born in the UK can only enter the green card lottery if the place of birth is in Northern Ireland.
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 5, 2018 at 16:04
  • @phoog I've made a diluted note of that in my answer - the list of possible exceptions/inclusions can get pretty complex.
    – Jim MacKenzie
    Commented Jul 5, 2018 at 16:42
  • @phoog also, someone born in the UK can get a green card if they are married to someone who successfully applies for the green card lottery themselves
    – Scott Earle ♦
    Commented Jul 6, 2018 at 8:13
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    @ScottEarle So another route would be to find a spouse born in an eligible country who also wants to move to the US and then hope that she or he is successful in the lottery. It's probably easier just to find a US citizen spouse who is already in the US, especially with the looming possibility of changes to the US immigration system.
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 6, 2018 at 14:01
  • You said “only”. I was pointing out another way
    – Scott Earle ♦
    Commented Jul 6, 2018 at 22:08
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Although it won't help you stay permanently, since you mention Florida theme parks, you might be interested in Disney's cultural representative program. It would be a non-immigrant visa (probably J-1) so you would have to show your intention to return to your home abroad afterwards. But it could be a longer and more interesting experience in the US than you can get as a tourist.

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