Visa difficulty

silent_knight

Hi,

Is it really that difficult to get a visa for the US? I was offered a job with a construction company a couple of months ago, had a number of phone interviews with them and they said the job was mine. 2 months has gone by and I have not heard from them since and am getting worried. I have sent them a few e-mails but they have not responded. Does it seem like they have backed down from giving me the job because of the cost of getting me a visa?

Thanks

silja

2 months isn't that long in visa terms, depending on the visa they are trying to get for you. Some visas are only available certain times of year.

What kind of work were you supposed to do for them (ie laborer, or specialised engineering work etc)? It takes about $5000 for them to get a visa if you are refering to a H1B type visa, so that could well be an issue. They also need to proof they cannot get an American to do the job, which would be difficult if you are "just" a qualified laborer/ bricklayer etc, but well possible for a specialised engineer.

silent_knight

Thanks for the reply. They had never had to process a visa before so they thought I had to do all the visa paperwork but when I informed them that they had to organise and process the visa I never got a reply from them. Is it strange that I have had no contact from them in 2 months? I am a qualified construction plant fitter and have 10 years' experience working in that field so they were very interested in hiring me as Americans don't get the same training and experience as we do in that field.

Palmy

Sounds like you would need an H1B visa.To be honest unless they really,really need your skills its alot of hassle,time,and money for a company to go through.I dont think people here in the U.S really know how hard it is to get a visa to come work here.Unless they have sponsered a person for a visa before.
I am not here very long and the amount of people that dont even know what the Green card Lottery is (more called the diversity visa)and are really amazed that so many people apply each year,and that we cant just get a visa and come over to live here.It's such a massive country over here,and in some cases people live in a little bubble, Every State has its own laws and regulations and is almost run like a seperate country.Although you have Federal laws etc.
If you haven't heard back I take it that they think it's to much work for them,I am pretty sure they limit the H1B visa per/year as well..Good luck though

silja

I would say it is strange that there was no contact had all- not because of the visa (like I said, that can take some time), but if they were really keen, they would want to keep you appraised of the process. Similarly to a company saying they would be interested in hiring you, they just needed to check with the boss, and then never contact you again. Do you have a phone number that you could call them on to talk to someone? Not this week though- it is Thanksgiving tomorrow and everywhere will be closed.