UK -> USA family conundrum

Hello friends, I just realised this is a repatriation issue so I'm posting here as well.

I'm writing on behalf of my neighbours who are looking to move from the UK to the USA.

Facts:
They are married with one child (6m). She is a US citizen, he is only a UK citizen.

She has been offered a job in Chicago, but from what they've told me, only she and the baby (USA citizen too of course) can go at the moment. It will take up to 1 year for the husband to get his visa to be allowed to come.

That sounds bizarre to me! Since when are families unable to move together? Is her employer just being inept in not helping properly or is this really the case? Any workarounds to keep them together?

Thanks!
A

I don't think it will take a year, but yes, it will take some time for the UK spouse to obtain a visa to join his wife in the US, just as it takes time for the US citizen to get a UK visa. That's just how it works. Being married doesn't instantly give you the right to immigrate to the country where your spouse is a citizen. That's not a new development, either.

That sounds about right.  It took about 8 months from start to finish to get my husband a green card to move to the US back in 2010.  It's a lot of paperwork and processing and each step takes a few months.  My husband and I were super on top of things too.  The minute we got approval for one step, we sent in the paperwork for the next step.  I can't remember the exact specifics, but my husband did travel to the US while the green card was being processed, so I think that the Husband could start the process here in the UK.  Help move his wife and child over, stay on a tourist visa for as long as he is allowed and then come back to the UK to finalize the visa.  

But if the wife wants to start the job right away...yes, there will probably be some time they end up spending apart due to the lengthy process of getting a green card.  And since she is the US citizen, the employer isn't being inept, but probably not doing anything because they don't have to.  She has the right to work in the US.  He has the right to a green card based on marriage and for a green card based on marriage, the employer wouldn't really be involved in the application.

Yes, on average it takes about 8-10 months for a US Spousal visa to be processed, so if they wanted to be able to move to the US together as a family they would have to wait until his visa has been processed. Ideally then they would want to apply for his visa about 10 months to a year before they wished to move.

Alternatively if she has a job in the US and can't wait for that long in the UK, she can move to the US with their child while he stays in the UK and waits for the visa to be processed.

There may be a situation in which he can come to the US earlier while his visa is being decided (as has been mentioned already) but I'm not sure of the details of doing that.

HI KIRSTEN!!!

wow, i am naive. yes, i guess it's true that the employers have no obligation since she's an american citizen. I would just think if an employer wants someone bad enough, the whole family would be sponsored; not many partners would leave their family behind surely. but, again, I appreciate that she is a US citizen.

Karin, could you elaborate on how your hubs was able to visit? I suggested that, but the UK hubs said they 'frowned upon visitor visas'. if he could do it twice for 3 months, i'm sure they could cope (even though their little darling is only 6m!); is it allowed?

HI KIRSTEN!!!

wow, i am naive. yes, i guess it's true that the employers have no obligation since she's an american citizen. I would just think if an employer wants someone bad enough, the whole family would be sponsored; not many partners would leave their family behind surely. but, again, I appreciate that she is a US citizen.

Hey amber ! How's things?

The thing is that the employer can't sponsor them because there is no one to sponsor.
The employee is a US citizen so she has the right to work in the US and doesn't need a sponsored visa. Therefore the husband can't get a dependant sponsored visa because the wife isn't being sponsored.

In order for the husband to get sponsorship from the company, he is the one who would have to be offered the US job... But there are only a certain number of work visas available each year and as he is married to a US citizen, he can just get a spousal visa instead, which means it's easier for the company as they don't need to use one of their sponsored visa allocations to hire him. They can just give him a job based on his right to work as a spouse and not on how highly skilled he is.

It would be like you trying to move to the UK on a work visa (which can be extremely difficult to qualify for) when you could just apply for the spousal visa instead and automatically have the right to work in any job you like without needing sponsorship.

Thanks for your in-depth reply, Kirsten! I should have finished my sentence to say that i appreciate she is a US citizen...so the thought is not applicable. I hear what you're saying.

I am well! our little bundle is a treat now that he sleeps better! we're likely to repatriate ourselves sometime this year, but the process will be smooth since we're both US citizens. Bristol is lovely, but just hasn't been great for us job-wise. And I really miss my family. that baby was a total game-changer!
xx

It's all a bit hazy now....

We started the process in January-ish and I know he went for a week business trip to meet his soon to be new colleagues in the US in June.  I remember that there was some parts of the process that you had to be in the country you filed in, once at the beginning - probably until they processed your application as being received and once at the end when you have to go to the embassy for your interview and surrender your passport to get the visa.  But I think other than that you are free to travel. 

Thank you Geeta, Kirsten, and Karin!