Guys Help me Out Here!!!

[Trimontana]

Well, one more time i need your opinion guys.
I live in London now for almost 5 years, i came to this city from my small town in Spain in 2000. Now i am a manager in a tanning salon but i have a degree in marketing and sales and i have experience as a bar manager, waitress and bartender. I had enough of London.
I aplied for The USA Green Card Lottery last September. I will know if i get it between May and June. It's really my desire go to try to live to USA. If i get this visa i will be a legal citizen to live and work in The USA. But i dont get it i was thinking to save a lot of money and go and try it anyway for 6 months. But if i go just for 6 months i cant work there, i will have a tourist visa. I have friends who told me that i always can work ilegal there...no much help . I really like american people and their culture....i dont feel much British
My question is:
Should i go even if i dont get the Green Card???? I am confused here....but i want that so badly.
And where i should go to live???. I really love NY......what do you think guys???.I am open to all your sugestions and advices.
Thanks again guys.
Love y'all
xxxGabixxx

[Mulletman]

immigration is a bitch, trust me. You have more luck winning the lottery than striking gold with them. If you dont get it, wait and reapply, do not try to work as an illegal. The only thing you will be able to do is manual labor, no one will care about your degrees or experience. Trust me, you'll onlybe eligable for those jobs NO american will want. So wait, thats all that can be said. If you want to try anything here in the states don't do it for over a month.

[Trimontana]

Thanks for your advice man.
My friends told me that they get fake documents there. They bought a fake identity, a passport with their same names but different surnames to guys who works specially with that kind of stuff. They worked in good jobs, one of them was a restaurant manager in NY in a very important restaurant getting more than a good wedges.
But well, i suposse that you need to be lucky. I really dont wanna live worry about my fake identity every day and get the risk to be caught by immigration.
Another solution is get married with an american guy .....just for the visa.
I feel like the East European countries people when they just to come here to London when it was ilegal for them and they used to get married with European people paying them money.

More advices guys???

[Higher_Desire]

I would suggest waiting to see if the green card comes through. The fake documents are a bad idea IMO. They can be really easy to spot, plus, if you get caught, you'll face jail time as a felon and definetly won't be able to come back.

If you get a tourist visa, would you automatically be denied for the green card? That would be a bad route to go. Especailly if you can't work for 6 months. That makes it really difficult to support yourself.

Marrying an American guy would work too, I guess. A good place for that is Caldwell Idaho (just a suggestion). Hey! That's where I am! What a coincidence. lol.

For places to live, I would suggest California. I love it there. New York is definetly a place with oppurtunity. Maybe also Texas? You could work in Las Vegas or Reno if you want to be a showgirl.

Do not come and work as in illegal. Trust me when I say that we hate illegals coming in and taking our jobs and will try very hard to get rid of them. Usually we succeed. Also, it's illegal for the employer to hire an illegal and they'd face penalties too if caught.


H-D

[Mulletman]

LOL marry an american guy, well same applies if you get pregnant on US soil. Well, have a child on US soil. Just some info... in any case. If you get caught, you are exiled from the U.S. and immediately deported. People who miss immigration deadlines are kicked ouf for five years, those who lie on thier paperwork and get caught are gone for 11. In a post 9/11 world, if you get caught with fraudulent documentation, you will serve jail time here and THEN get deported. Trust me, its not worth it. INS policy in the US is different for countries. For example, I was born in Mexico. INS's pocily is different for Mexican immigrants when compared to those from Canada, other latin american countries, or in your case England or Spain.

Where you move too also depends greatly. If you go to NYC, the cost of living is high, very high. If you move to some rural city, the cost of living will be lower.

My Advice, come visit for a few days with a visa, but do EVERYTHING the legal way. You will regret it greatly if you fuck up. I've lived here my entire life. Ive spent more time in the back of a squad car than I have out side the country (and thats not a lot), but it took me 15 years for my immigration papers to run thier course. Its a slow brutal process and you dont want to fuck it up.

[Mulletman]

Quote: (Originally Posted by Higher_Desire)

Trust me when I say that we hate illegals coming in and taking our jobs and will try very hard to get rid of them. Usually we succeed. Also, it's illegal for the employer to hire an illegal and they'd face penalties too if caught.

Well as caustic as that comment is, it has some truth to it. But whatever job you can get, i assure you you wont like it.

[Trimontana]

Wow guys, you are great. Thanks very much!!! Love ya
Mulletan, thanks in deed for all the info. I was in NY last November and i loved it. I was considering very seriously about the married with an american.
Colin man, i will visit you to Idaho....just kiding
Maybe if i save enough money i will go there for a couple of months but i wanna spend some time in The States. This country is depressing me too much. And after considering coming back to my country...no way..i cant stand Spain no more...i feel like i cant breath when i am there.
I will let ya know my final decision anyway.

[RMadd]

i'm not up on immigration rules, but i would definitely advise against working illegally. seriously, bad idea. for one thing, the work won't be great. there's a reason we have a buttload of jokes for illegals & the type of work they do lol. just keep trying to get in legally, b/c it's a grand ol' time to live here w/o being worried about getting caught. plus, illegals are left out of the loop alot.

[RMadd]

Quote: (Originally Posted by Higher_Desire)

For places to live, I would suggest California. I love it there. New York is definetly a place with oppurtunity. Maybe also Texas? You could work in Las Vegas or Reno if you want to be a showgirl.

Midwest, baby! our cost-of-living is the lowest in the nation, I believe. Gas prices here are only $1.70 or so. housing is also much much more affordable here. i remember when my dad's company was considering transfering him out to Cali about 7 years ago, he asked a guy out there how much it would cost to live in a 50-yr old house that's about 2000 sq ft on roughly 1/8 acre lot, in a AAA school district (i guess that's a good thing?), live within 30 mins of work, etc. I think the figure was well over $500,000. We bought our house for about $170,000. Plus it's nice and not crowded most places here (except Chicago, but they don't count b/c the Cubs suck). And we get all types of weather here in Missouri, all in moderation.

Quote: (Originally Posted by Higher_Desire)

Do not come and work as in illegal. Trust me when I say that we hate illegals coming in and taking our jobs and will try very hard to get rid of them. Usually we succeed. Also, it's illegal for the employer to hire an illegal and they'd face penalties too if caught.

i don't have much experience in terms of getting a job taken from an illegal, but as of right now, i don't mind the legals coming in & taking the jobs that we otherwise wouldn't like (cleaning crews, lawn mowing, etc.). but the illegals are a drain, receiving services from the federal, state & local gov'ts for which they don't pay (thru income & property taxes). but i do know people that have had difficulty finding work, an occurrence which they attributed to large numbers of immigrants concentrated in a relatively small area.

[Dogstar]

I have to agree with what Mulletman said regarding a post-9/11 world. It's a recipe for disaster to try with fake documentation. New York is indeed very expensive, as is the Northeast in general. California also is pretty expensive. I think they have one of the highest prices for gas in the country.