Need lots of Advice! Oregon to UK by myself

first off, hi everyone

my name is meg, i'm 34 and currently live in Oregon.  I've wanted to live in England since i was a little girl.  I did a summer course over there while in high school.  and i just returned from a 2 week trip where I made loads of friends and just fell in love with the country all over again.  the friends I made are anxious to get me over there soon   and it's not just that I love it there, but I really don't like it here.  I lost most of my family to cancer in the past couple of years (I was the only one in the family who could take care of them, so I had to personally watch each one die, and it was too much for me).  After we lost gramps, gran, and my aunt and uncle, we had to sell off our farm, where I've lived since birth.  I bought a condo, but I really don't like it here.  And my area has recently become so violent due to political issues.  Just driving home from work is dangerous some days.  So my mother offered to pay for me to move to the UK, since she doesn't want to stay here either, but she wants to go to Costa Rica (too hot for me).


After my visit, I kind of determined I liked the Southampton area, and would love to live near there.  But I am at a complete loss of even how to begin this process.  Obviously my first step is to find employment, which seems like the biggest hurdle as well.  I have a degree in TV/Film production (cause I fell in love with british comedies when i was a kid, and wanted to make them someday); however, I know that field is very competitive, and I am honestly willing to take ANY job I can, just to be in the UK.  I have a lot of experience with hospice care, as I spent years caring for my dying family, including one very hyper old man with dementia <3

Obviously I need some guidance with the whole legal paperwork web I know I'll have to deal with in moving.

And I have a dog.  While my mother offered to take him for a few months so I could get things in order, eventually I want him to be with me too... cause he's my baby.

So any advice and guidance people could give me would be SOOOO appreciated.  At this point my thoughts about it were to go over there for a few months as a "visitor" (maybe I could find a rental willing to accept 4-5months rent in advance to cover my whole stay?) and try to find an employer, then return to the US, apply for the job and visa, then make my final move after that.  Thoughts? 

Thanks everyone! 

Welcome to the forum .

I think your main hurdle for getting to the UK is qualifying for a visa to move here.

Unfortunately, it's not as simple as just getting a job and moving. You'll need to secure a visa before you move. See here for Tier 2 work visa information: https://www.gov.uk/tier-2-general/overview

Unless you work in a very highly skilled, specialised or shortage occupation, a Tier 2 work visa is generally between very difficult and almost impossible to qualify for.

There is a list of shortage jobs that are easier to get a visa for, but if your job/profession is not on that list, then the UK company will have to prove they have not been able to find a single suitable applicant in the UK or any of the EU countries before they will be allowed to hire you (this is the Resident Labour Market Test, or RLMT). With 500 million people in the EU, that's a lot of potentially suitable applicants!

In regards to TV and Film jobs, the following are on the Shortage Occupation List:

3411 Artist   
Only the following jobs in this occupation code:

Animator in visual effects and 2D/3D computer animation for the film, television or video games sectors                   

3416 Arts officers, producers and directors
Only the following jobs in this occupation code:

The following jobs in visual effects and 2D/3D computer animation for the film, television or video games sectors:
- 2D supervisor
- 3D supervisor
- computer graphics
- supervisor
- producer
- production manager
- technical director
- visual effects supervisor                   
3421 Graphic designers   
Only the following jobs in this occupation code:

The following jobs in visual effects and 2D/3D computer animation for the film, television or video games sectors:
- compositing artist matte
- painter modeller rigger
- stereo artist texture artist    (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-k-shortage-occupation-list)

So, unless one of those fits your skills, the employer will have to go through the RLMT before they can hire you and sponsor a visa for you.

Alternatively, if a work visa doesn't look possible, you could try for a student visa to study for another degree in the UK. It's much easier to qualify for a student visa than a work visa, but you do need a lot of money available to you (about $30,000 in cash or private loans for 1 year). However, if you had a degree from a UK university, you could get sponsorship for a work visa without needing to pass the RLMT.

See here for Tier 4 student visa information:https://www.gov.uk/tier-4-general-visa/overview
 
In theory it's possible to visit for a few months, and you are allowed to interview for a job, but you would need to be able to show:
- a return ticket
- enough money to support yourself for the entire trip without working (no remote or online work is allowed)
Ties to the US, such as:
-  a home in the US that you are maintaining and will return to
- a job in the US that you must return to by a certain date
- any other commitments or ties that you must return for (family members, events, appointments, interviews etc.)
- no intention of working while in the UK as a visitor (I.e. Knowing you will have to return to the US to get a work visa)



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Hi Meg, welcome. 

As Ksand24 has explained, getting a visa for the UK is not easy at all unfortunately.

Although a few of the members of this board are here on work or student visas, the majority have one or other of the partner visas.
You mention making friends quickly during your trip. Is one of those perhaps a love interest?  It's quite common for long distance relationships to evolve such that one of the couple moves to be with the other eventually. But the spouse/fiance visas too have strict requirements and a financial component and the relationship would need to be genuine so that is not an easy option either.

I did have a short fling with a guy while there, but I know he isn't interested in anything more, and he wouldn't meet the financial requirements either (great guy, but not well employed).

I do have the means to support myself for several months on a visit to look for work, then return to the US to apply for a job/visa before returning to the UK.  I can probably cover 5 or so months worth of expenses, which (i'm hoping) will be enough time to find an employer willing to sponsor my visa.  But I'd like to have a little bit of an idea where to start looking before I head over there.

A long visit sounds like a good idea.  You won't be able to get a rental as it's illegal to rent to someone without a visa that allows living in the UK.  But you could stay at a hotel, hostel, or BnB.

so if I went there as a visitor for a long stay, I could look for work while in the country (not actually get hired till I returned to the states, but I could meet with potential employers, right?)

as for rentals, I think I could get a local to help me with that. got lots of friends in the area who could be the name on a rental

so if I went there as a visitor for a long stay, I could look for work while in the country (not actually get hired till I returned to the states, but I could meet with potential employers, right?)

Yes, you can.  But you will need strong proof of ties to the US to be allowed in (listed up above).

that's not a problem.  i still use my mom's address, as my current home was always intended to be temporary.  she'll be staying in the US for a few years at least (dad is gonna die soon, and she'll have to handle the estate afterwards).  and i have two jobs, one of which would let me come back if i left for a few months, as we are all very close friends at that job.

Hi Meg! Welcome to the forums. And all the best of luck to you in a very difficult undertaking!

One of the things you may run into (unless you are one of the Shortage jobs that ksand listed) is that employers are all going to ask you the same question: Are you legally eligible to work in the UK? And unfortunately, answering "no" will generally make your CV go straight into the trash.

Not trying to kill your dreams, I promise, but from personal experience it was very disheartening 

Maybe you will have better luck than I did! Fingers crossed, and all the brilliant people here are around to answer all your questions 

as for rentals, I think I could get a local to help me with that. got lots of friends in the area who could be the name on a rental

I hope that there's a way for you to spend some time in the UK before moving over, but I don't think it would work to have someone else's name on the lease. To live somewhere, you need to be named on the lease and to be on a lease, you need to prove you're legally living in the country (a visitor visa won't count as it's for visiting, not living in, the UK).

I hope something works out! Just be prepared for an uphill climb. Unfortunately, the UK is pretty anti-immigration right now.

So has anyone here actually gone the tier 2 visa route without simply a company transfer (like actually finding tier 2 visa sponsored work in the UK?)

So has anyone here actually gone the tier 2 visa route without simply a company transfer (like actually finding tier 2 visa sponsored work in the UK?)

Welcome to the group!

Hopefully somebody here will have experience with this, but I have found that most expats I've spoken to on a work visa are here because they were transferred. One person I worked with was on a 2 year visa as we both worked for a Global company with US origins and she was allowed to transfer to  any head office she wanted for her role for the length of a visa and she picked the UK as it was the only English-speaking country.

I was exactly where you were at one point in terms of aspirations (wanting, since childhood to live over here) so it's totally something that is possible. I happened to meet the love of my life who was English (after I had accepted the fact it was highly unlikely I'd ever move over here for real) so never say never!

If you're able to save up money, in your situation I would strongly suggest looking at a student visa. It's expensive - as already mentioned - but sounds like it might be the most realistic/likely option at present.

if I was to do a student visa, what would that entail, and what would be the best course to take in order to get help with local job placement?

if I was to do a student visa, what would that entail, and what would be the best course to take in order to get help with local job placement?

You can read about the student visa here.

https://www.gov.uk/tier-4-general-visa