Newbie here

We (my British husband, highly educated in the UK) and myself (American, educated to a masters degree), will likely return to the US by the time our daughter is 12.  We both feel more comfortable with the US system.  Now if she is amazing at exams, knows beyond a shadow of a doubt what she wants to be by the time she's 14, and doesn't want to experience all the extracurricular activities available in the US, then we will stay.

I have dual citizenship and came here on a spousal visa. While the company I worked for is a large, regular tier 2 sponsor, none of the managerial jobs passed the resident labour market test and so no non-EU individuals had a chance. It is only in engineering and design that we were able to bring over talent and even then not often.

Hm, well again - I don't know why a recruiter (especially an internal one) would bother with me then? Genuine question.

I have not done the complete analysis as you seem to have done! I would love to read your research...

This is all that I got from your post, and it was rude. Thank you for the warm welcome.

We (my British husband, highly educated in the UK) and myself (American, educated to a masters degree), will likely return to the US by the time our daughter is 12.  We both feel more comfortable with the US system.  Now if she is amazing at exams, knows beyond a shadow of a doubt what she wants to be by the time she's 14, and doesn't want to experience all the extracurricular activities available in the US, then we will stay.

That's reasonable. I understand that the extracurricular programs available here are absolutely better than most places. How old is she now?

Education is a really subjective thing. I personally feel I would have done better in the British system because I did know what I wanted to study quite early on, but my British husband would have been much better off in the US system. His school didn't have a lot of options for A-levels and didn't care enough to try to figure out what he might be good at. He ended up studying history and Spanish then discovered much later in life that he would have preferred science and technology. In the US, it would be relatively easy for him to re-train and change jobs, but here he would have to go back to A-levels again, something he's not prepared to do at 43. I love living in the UK for a lot of reasons, but I find their ideas on education and work qualifications stiflingly rigid. Here it doesn't matter if you can do something, only that you have a bit of paper that says you can do it. Transferable skills are not a thing. Bit of paper=qualified, and no deeper thought ever goes into it. If you think your kids will thrive studying a few subjects in depth and then building their careers based on that, then the UK will be good for them. If they would do better in a more flexible environment where they have more general studies, then they'd be better off in the US.

The experience of immigration can also be subjective. Some people have an easy time of it, others a much harder one. You seem to have some pretty fixed ideas about how things are, and you may find that some of those ideas prove to be true in your experience while others don't. I don't think anyone here is trying to be rude to you, just to caution you that the sailing might not be as smooth as you anticipate. You might find the employment and visa process easy, your family may settle well in the UK, and you may have a decent standard of living here, but those things also might not happen. It's a difficult, stressful, expensive process that can be equal parts rewarding and soul crushing. Just keep an open mind and be prepared for both good and bad outcomes  .

Education is a really subjective thing. I personally feel I would have done better in the British system because I did know what I wanted to study quite early on, but my British husband would have been much better off in the US system. His school didn't have a lot of options for A-levels and didn't care enough to try to figure out what he might be good at. He ended up studying history and Spanish then discovered much later in life that he would have preferred science and technology. In the US, it would be relatively easy for him to re-train and change jobs, but here he would have to go back to A-levels again, something he's not prepared to do at 43. I love living in the UK for a lot of reasons, but I find their ideas on education and work qualifications stiflingly rigid. Here it doesn't matter if you can do something, only that you have a bit of paper that says you can do it. Transferable skills are not a thing. Bit of paper=qualified, and no deeper thought ever goes into it. If you think your kids will thrive studying a few subjects in depth and then building their careers based on that, then the UK will be good for them. If they would do better in a more flexible environment where they have more general studies, then they'd be better off in the US.

The experience of immigration can also be subjective. Some people have an easy time of it, others a much harder one. You seem to have some pretty fixed ideas about how things are, and you may find that some of those ideas prove to be true in your experience while others don't. I don't think anyone here is trying to be rude to you, just to caution you that the sailing might not be as smooth as you anticipate. You might find the employment and visa process easy, your family may settle well in the UK, and you may have a decent standard of living here, but those things also might not happen. It's a difficult, stressful, expensive process that can be equal parts rewarding and soul crushing. Just keep an open mind and be prepared for both good and bad outcomes  .

I appreciate your response!

I actually don't think that anything has been rude except for that one response that I quoted. It was intentionally rude. Other than that, I think that everyone has been very helpful!

My thoughts are very open to change on almost every subject. But like you, I definitely see myself as someone who would have thrived in the British educational system. So, I'm surely a bit biased on that particular matter...

Overall, I know that this might be a long road, but the premise is quite exciting.

Hm, well again - I don't know why a recruiter (especially an internal one) would bother with me then? Genuine question.

Hey there!
Often times it is because the recruiters don't fully understand the immigration rules. They may be under the impression that they can hire non-EU people as simply as if you were from the EU. An easy way to see if the recruiter knows their stuff is for you to know the process for you to be hired and ask them about it. I've had several friends who want to move to the UK and were very disappointed to find out how difficult it is.

You've picked a good forum with a lot of knowledgeable people regarding the visa process for spouses/fiances/partners and tier 2 and 4 visas.

We've had quite a few people hire lawyers/solicitors for the visa process and those lawyers/solicitors tell the applicants to do their paperwork wrong or to supply the incorrect paperwork (someone left out a required appendix because the didn't know to do it!) or even give them the wrong timescale to mail in their application. And recruiters have done the same thing. Non-EU hires are complicated and if the recruiter hasn't done their research they would be mis-informed.

The UK immigration process is a living thing and it changes at least once a year. It's crazy.

Welcome, and I will confirm two assumptions you've made.
1- You will get more time off and holiday here.  Yesterday was a massive nationwide celebration with street parties everywhere. 

2- There is more history than you can shake a stick at. 

Recently we went to some of the First World War trenches in France as a day trip.  Can't do that in Vegas.

If you are looking for a place to live, consider Twickenham.  It's a lovely town next to the river, 20 minutes from London.  Good schools as well.

Hey there!
Often times it is because the recruiters don't fully understand the immigration rules. They may be under the impression that they can hire non-EU people as simply as if you were from the EU. An easy way to see if the recruiter knows their stuff is for you to know the process for you to be hired and ask them about it. I've had several friends who want to move to the UK and were very disappointed to find out how difficult it is.

You've picked a good forum with a lot of knowledgeable people regarding the visa process for spouses/fiances/partners and tier 2 and 4 visas.

We've had quite a few people hire lawyers/solicitors for the visa process and those lawyers/solicitors tell the applicants to do their paperwork wrong or to supply the incorrect paperwork (someone left out a required appendix because the didn't know to do it!) or even give them the wrong timescale to mail in their application. And recruiters have done the same thing. Non-EU hires are complicated and if the recruiter hasn't done their research they would be mis-informed.

The UK immigration process is a living thing and it changes at least once a year. It's crazy.

I would totally expect that from a third party recruiter who doesn't do any of the dirty work, but I guess that I was giving more credit to an internal HR person. Simply because they would also have to do some of the paperwork and on-boarding. Well, I do appreciate the head's up from all. Only time will tell if it can work or not. For now, I will sweat it it out in the desert.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk

Welcome, and I will confirm two assumptions you've made.
1- You will get more time off and holiday here.  Yesterday was a massive nationwide celebration with street parties everywhere. 

2- There is more history than you can shake a stick at. 

Recently we went to some of the First World War trenches in France as a day trip.  Can't do that in Vegas.

If you are looking for a place to live, consider Twickenham.  It's a lovely town next to the river, 20 minutes from London.  Good schools as well.

This all sounds lovely!

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk

This is all that I got from your post, and it was rude. Thank you for the warm welcome.

And now who's being rude? I am a teacher here, you your rose-coloured vision of this system does not entirely gel with my own... Honestly, I would like to read the research you have done into how UK education compares to the rest of the world's. I am a teacher and we spend as much time as possible learning about how others do it in order to improve my own practice.

I am glad you are willing to hear from others' with experience of your inquiries and to base your opinions on nothing more than 'what you think.'
 

I am one of the few Brits on here and thought I would put my tuppence in.

I have lived now in 13 countries and am a dual national and my wife a tri national.

Regards education, you will, like pretty much anywhere, get fantastic and crap. I know of some schools in the USA that if it were a choice of my child going there or getting no education at all, I would chose the later.

Holiday time, yes, generally you will get more. The legal minimum is 20 days, but most give significantly more.

History, yes bags of it. I live in Windsor which is a stones through from London and the town is dominated by the castle. Every resident of Windsor has free unlimited access to the castle and our daily lives pretty much work around it - for example, the changing of the guard causes roads to close.

As I am mentioning Windsor, I will also reply to a comment on Eton College as Eton is the opposite side of the river of Windsor. Eton is one of the greatest schools in the world, yes, generally eye wateringly expensive. However, 1 in 10 pay between little and nothing. Same with all private schools (which just to confuse you, private schools are referred to as Public Schools).

I don't know the visa situation for you, but, from my experience of running forums for Brits moving internationally, I always recommend you speak to a professional migration agent.

I am one of the few Brits on here and thought I would put my tuppence in.

I have lived now in 13 countries and am a dual national and my wife a tri national.

Regards education, you will, like pretty much anywhere, get fantastic and crap. I know of some schools in the USA that if it were a choice of my child going there or getting no education at all, I would chose the later.

Holiday time, yes, generally you will get more. The legal minimum is 20 days, but most give significantly more.

History, yes bags of it. I live in Windsor which is a stones through from London and the town is dominated by the castle. Every resident of Windsor has free unlimited access to the castle and our daily lives pretty much work around it - for example, the changing of the guard causes roads to close.

As I am mentioning Windsor, I will also reply to a comment on Eton College as Eton is the opposite side of the river of Windsor. Eton is one of the greatest schools in the world, yes, generally eye wateringly expensive. However, 1 in 10 pay between little and nothing. Same with all private schools (which just to confuse you, private schools are referred to as Public Schools).

I don't know the visa situation for you, but, from my experience of running forums for Brits moving internationally, I always recommend you speak to a professional migration agent.

13 countries?!? Wow! That is intense. What brought you to so many places? Military, diplomatic, adventure, or?

I love bags of history. That sounds wonderful to me. When I was in London last time, my friends didn't have a lot of time, so I spent the bulk of a week wandering around alone going to historical sights and museums. I barely scratched the surface. It would never tire for an old nerd like myself.

I would love to contact a pro migration agent. Anyone have any recommendations?

Thank you!

I would love to contact a pro migration agent. Anyone have any recommendations?

I think you might be wasting your money as the UK puts all the details for visas, up on the internet.  Apart from the link Kate gave, there is this
https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-general/overview

TBH, I too think that an area manager would not get a Tier 2 General work visa. Sorry.

There is an Entrepreneur visa, but you can't work for someone else and you need to have £200,000 and a good business plan and then take the risk to build a business and employ locals. Fail, then you leave.
https://www.gov.uk/tier-1-entrepreneur/overview

If you have at least £2,000,000 to invest in the UK, then there is the Investor visa
https://www.gov.uk/tier-1-investor/overview

I think you might be wasting your money as the UK puts all the details for visas, up on the internet.  Apart from the link Kate gave, there is this
https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-general/overview

TBH, I too think that an area manager would not get a Tier 2 General work visa. Sorry.

There is an Entrepreneur visa, but you can't work for someone else and you need to have £200,000 and a good business plan to build a business and employ locals. Fail, then you leave.
https://www.gov.uk/tier-1-entrepreneur/overview

See, but that's exactly why it would be a good idea to discuss it with a pro agent. An Area Manager position falls into SOC 3545, which is on the NQF 6 list. Meaning that it would qualify. But, so as to not waste time or money, a consultation would probably be wise.

But, on the agent subject: I was looking around at the list of approved agents, and it seems as though most of them cater to people who are already living within that particular community. I am curious if anyone here has used an agent for consultation prior to arriving?