retiring

[derek gibson]

hi hopefully we are going to move to florida as we have set up a jobs and brought a house ,we hope to go in july (if we get the visa sorted in time) .does anyone know how my mum and dad stand as they want to come as well and retire there can they do that as we dont have a green card

[SDJ]

Hi

I doubt very much if Mum and Dad will be allowed to stay indefinitely. If they get a B1 Visa they can stay for six months and then go back to the UK for a period of time before going back to Fla. The IMO are getting hot about this and when we enquired on renewing our B1 and B2 we asked about returning to US after a stay in UK of about 1 month. The answer 'if you get an Immigration Officer who is in a bad mood, he can turn you back as you already had 180 days in US'.

The US Embassey guy said there was no black and white rule, just upto the discretion of the I. Officer that day!!!!

We specifically asked the question as we had been questioned a couple of times - we are both over 60 - mind you, we didn't ask until they had granted us a further 10 year B1 B2. Not that stupid to upset them!!

I think it is dreadful that there is no hard and fast rule, but good luck with your venture.

Sandra

[chrizzy100]

You can't retire in the US unless you have worked at a job that gives you a greencard...or have a visa that leads to a greencard...
If you get your greencard and then after 5 years become an American...then you could start the ball rolling to bring them over...but I think that takes years and then some...Its not something I've looked into...I get on better with my mum with an ocean between us....

[esprit]

B2 is the best they can do. The only way for them to live full time there would be to buy a business and apply for E2 visas. You wouldnt believe the number of older people who would have taken early retirement in the UK running little businesses over here just for the right to stay full time. If they come out on B2, they could look for a business and then change status internally through Texas USCIS.

[derek gibson]

thanks for all your replys ,i think that they will look to buy a small bissiness to run with the visa when they get out there .i have been told that if you pay $1000 you can fast track the change of visa when they are out there .i think this will be the best way to go thanks again

[chrizzy100]

What visa are you waiting for...?

[Robert5988]

Presumably you have looked into the high cost of retiring in Florida without have worked there for many years?

I don't know the ages of your parents, or their state of health, but I take it you are aware of the many $000s it costs for medical insurance alone?

[derek gibson]

we are waiting for a investors visa .e2 i think we are buying a business ,it has just been filed with immigration

[SDJ]

Even if you fast track through Texas, you still have to go back to American Embassey after 2 years in the UK. They are getting wise to this and have delayed many people returning. These people have by now got a business running in US and they can't get back to it. You can read or hear about it on an almost weekly basis.

I hope you and your parents are going to do some serious homework. I would err on the side of caution if you have been told that a $1000 will fast track you. If that is the case, why are so many people waiting for visa changes. I am sure most people would love to pay and could afford to pay it. Be sure to get your facts correct and the only way to do this is to get onto the American Embassey website and it tells you all you need to know.

We on the forum can all give you this and that advice, but truly, you need official advice from the horse's mouth so to speak.

Good luck anyway, and keep trying. Never give up on your dream, just don't go headlong into it - you may fall out of the sky!!

Sandra

[esprit]

You can premium process an application for a change of status in Texas for $1000. You are right this will only give you an I-94 for two years and not a visa and you have to go back to London for interview to get the visa. It does cut down on some of the wait time for a visa through the embassy though, many months in some cases. I have heard that the number of people going the change of status route is increasing, Texas may put a lid on it if it gets out of hand.