Uh oh, problem?

I just looked at another thread and somebody said the only way to get UK/EU citizenship is to either have a partner with one, get a job through a UK company or try and find a way through ancestry?

The only one I could probably do is the ancestry one, my grandparents are Scottish, I think they've got dual citizenship with the U.S./U.K. So does this mean that if you don't have a UK partner or job, you can't move there? Oh dear.

Unfortunately, ancestry through your grandparents won't count for you since you are a US Citizen (unless you happen to be dual with a Commonwealth country- those are the only countries eligible for an Ancestry visa.)

Moving to the UK is very hard if you 1) don't have a spouse/partner connection, 2) are not eligible for work permit employment based on being in a shortage occupation or a company transfer, 3) don't have enough education/work experience to qualify as a Highly Skilled Migrant, and/or 4) are not an EU citizen already.  Pretty much your only options at this point are temporary schemes such as coming over as a student, or on a BUNAC visa...other than that, if you really want to move to the UK permanently on your own, you'd need to develop your skills and career enough so that you would eventually qualify as a skilled migrant, try to get a job with a company that can transfer you to their office in the UK, or go into an occupation that is on the work permit shortage list.

PS...welcome to UK-Y

Ohh this completely ruins my dream. How do you know if you qualify as a Highly Skilled Migrant?

Aw I'm so upset now.

Thanks for the welcome, though!

Are you in college? You could look at getting a BUNAC visa if you are (www.bunac.org)

Sorry, this topic was accidentally removed when the intent was to move it to a better place, all fixed now, and apologies.

Oh! No worries.

you can come over and work on a BUNAC visa for 6 months.

but unfortunately, the UK is like most countries in that a foreigner cannot just move over to live (unless they are EU/EEA nationals or dual nationals).

grandparents would work if you were a Commonwealth national - Canada, Australia, etc. - but not for Americans.

Agh, I hate America, why can't we just have been a Commonwealth? Grr. I imagined the hard part of this would be obtaining the visa, not trying to figure out which one I'm qualified for!

Agh, I hate America, why can't we just have been a Commonwealth? Grr. I imagined the hard part of this would be obtaining the visa, not trying to figure out which one I'm qualified for!

I'm in the opposite situation to you- I already have citizenship with a Commonwealth country but no grandparents from the UK so I can't qualify for Ancestry.  You've hit the nail right on the head, though....figuring out a way to move over can be difficult, but once you qualify under a given category, actually getting the visa is a fairly simple and straightforward process.  good luck!

Aw, sorry you can't qualify either.

Good luck to you too!

Agh, I hate America, why can't we just have been a Commonwealth?

You don't mean that right?    Lots of good reasons why we all should be happy we were not a Commonwealth of the UK......

Don't worry, I didn't mean it I love America. I'm just frustrated.

Hi hope this helps it does  not state on this list you can not be from the USA to claim it,

you are a Commonwealth citizen
you are aged 17 or over
you have a grandparent who was born in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man (see note below)
you have a grandparent who was born in what is now the Republic of Ireland before 31 March 1922 (see note below)
you are able to work and intend to do so in the UK, and
you can support yourself and any dependants, and live without needing any help from public funds.

Note: if you or your parent (who you are claiming ancestry through) are adopted, you can still apply for entry under this category. You must show evidence of the legal adoption with your application form.

There are other sites also.

I think Garry and Victoria would also be able to clarify all of this for you also.

Good luck

Hi hope this helps it does  not state on this list you can not be from the USA to claim it,

you are a Commonwealth citizen

That first criteria says it all...the US is not part of the Commonwealth and so anyone holding just American citizenship (without also being a citizen of a Commonwealth country) would not be eligible for the Ancestry Visa, even if they met all the other requirements.

There is a list giving you different options it does not say that if you are from the USA you can not applie.

I think Victoria or Garry really need to step in here and confirm what information is correct as when we looked into it there are several sites that my fiance looked into and it was ok if he was from the USA on them.

I would hate for someone to be dissappointed and give up or waste money if the wrong info where given to them.