Young Irish guy thinking of moving to the US

I-Love-Ratm · #1 02-22-2011, 11:14 AM

Hey guys and girls,

As many of you probably know the Irish economy is at a low and huge amounts of young people are leaving the country to go to Canada, Australia and the US as well as many other places. I think I want to join them. A bit of info then.

I'm 23 and in May I should be graduated college with a B.Eng degree in Music Production and Technology. I think before the end of the year I want to move to New York. It might be just for a year or could be more depending on how it goes when I get there. A friend of my brothers has lived there for 6 years now and I've been in contact with him and it sounds pretty good! I'd be looking at getting a job bar tending (which I have 5 years experience in) and then trying to play as much music as possible. All I want to do is play, produce and make as much music as possible. I've been playing bass as well for 10 years with plenty of live and studio experience.

What I want to know is what is my best approach to making this move? What Visa do I need to apply for? Any tips, advice or just discussion is welcome.

Thanks!

MJ5150 · #2 02-22-2011, 11:16 AM

Move to Seattle, it is called the Emerald City.

-Mike

Deluge Of Sound · #3 02-22-2011, 11:16 AM

Luckily for you, its much easier to emigrate to the United States from Ireland than the reverse.

MakiSupaStar · #4 02-22-2011, 11:17 AM

Good luck. The economy sucks here too.

Deluge Of Sound · #5 02-22-2011, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MakiSupaStar

Good luck. The economy sucks here too.

I don't think the situations are very comparable, honestly.

Getting a speeding ticket sucks.

Having your car obliterated by lava when you don't have volcano insurance sucks too.

'Nah mean?

Relic · #6 02-22-2011, 11:25 AM

the economy is rough here as well, maki is right. I'm thinking though that it might be a little better than in Ireland (I've heard that's it's really really rough there right now) but prepare for a struggle here as well. Though if I had to pick a place to shoot for, it'd be the NYC area.

Ziltoid · #7 02-22-2011, 11:27 AM

Perhaps move where you find a job? Idk

Rusty Chainsaw · #8 02-22-2011, 11:55 AM

Getting a visa to immigrate to the US is easier said than done, and is a paperwork minefield.

You do have a few options - the H1-B visa is the skilled worker visa, but they only issue a certain number of them per year, and most of them are already taken years in advance, mostly by overseas tech workers. If you get a job with a multinational company with offices in the US, you could ask them to sponsor you for an L-1 intra-company transfer visa. Or, if you want to study, you might qualify for an F-1 student visa, but the overseas student fees at most US colleges are very scary.

Other than that, your options are limited. Ireland is still a qualifying country for the diversity "visa lottery", although that's very much based on chance and is, again, subject to a quota. You could also marry an American (that's what I did

).

Canada might be an option - their immigration process is a bit more open than in the US, but the waiting times are substantially longer (up to 5 years in some cases) and your application is subject to "labour market approval" - basically, you're only allowed to come in on a skilled visa if you have a job offer and that the company in question hasn't found a Canadian to do the job. You can also enter Canada on a temporary work permit if you can secure a job with a favourable labour market opinion - this process is much quicker (a couple of months, typically), but be prepared to be kicked out a year later if the job doesn't last.

Personally, if you want out of Ireland, I'd say your best option is Australia. You speak English and you've got a degree, so that, on its own, stands you in good stead to immigrate. Australia's great, but it might be a bit too far away if you're the sort to miss your family. If you do go Down Under, be prepared to get back no more than once per year, because the trip is a 28-hour ordeal. If you can hack it though, it'll be a lot more "familiar" to you than the US or Canada - more of the same stuff you're used to in terms of food, culture, sense of humour, etc, and, if you're bringing electrical stuff with you, it'll work with only a plug adapter, since they use the same voltage as the UK and Ireland.

For anyone thinking of going the other way - if you qualify for *any* EU citizenship by descent (usually up to two generations back - if one of your grandparents was a citizen of an EU country you should qualify), apply for your EU passport from your country of descent, and you'll be able to live and work in any EU country, including the UK and Ireland. Things are generally quite bad in Ireland, but some sectors are still doing well, particularly the IT sector. Microsoft, Google, Yahoo, etc all have their EU headquarters in Ireland and hire regularly.

I-Love-Ratm · #9 02-22-2011, 12:06 PM

I don't really want to head to Australia to be honest. Not much music happening there. I want to move to experience the city and play music, not to make loads of money. My buddy said he could set me up with a bar job no problem. And yes guys the economy here is worse than over there. Even besides that I just wanna go see and experience some cool stuff!

Relic · #10 02-22-2011, 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by I-Love-Ratm

I don't really want to head to Australia to be honest. Not much music happening there. I want to move to experience the city and play music, not to make loads of money. My buddy said he could set me up with a bar job no problem. And yes guys the economy here is worse than over there. Even besides that I just wanna go see and experience some cool stuff!

Well, if nothing more - if you make it to NYC, you have a cold beer waiting for you over here next-door in Jersey

bwv1013 · #11 02-22-2011, 12:14 PM

i'll agree with the above sentiments that the economy sucks here too. i have no basis for comparison, i would guess that most countries are feeling it one way or another.

with all that said new york is an EXPENSIVE city. i wouldn't recommend moving there unless you've got a fair bit of cash saved up and a place to stay for several months, preferably both.

i have a brother in law who moved there with his wife a while back. they lasted about a month or so, used up their savings and had to come back here. i'm not trying to dissuade you as much as give you a heads up. if your brother's friend can spare some room and give you some leads on a job you might just make it. maybe some of our new yorkers can give some perspective on making a living tending bar...

you could always move to a smaller city in the vicinity of a big metro area to get started on the cheap. either way best of luck and let us know where you end up!

Rusty Chainsaw · #12 02-22-2011, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by I-Love-Ratm

I don't really want to head to Australia to be honest. Not much music happening there. I want to move to experience the city and play music, not to make loads of money. My buddy said he could set me up with a bar job no problem. And yes guys the economy here is worse than over there. Even besides that I just wanna go see and experience some cool stuff!

The bar job is irrelevant, really. You need a concrete basis to immigrate legally, and that would have to be for a professional job, company transfer or family - nothing else would cut it, unless you've got half a million dollars or so and want to come in to set up a business. Nothing else qualifies you for a green card, which you'll need in order to work, and there's very little safety net in the US if you can't.

You could come over for up to 3 months on a tourist visa and see if you like it, and then maybe explore your options. If you do this, DO NOT overstay - you will be deported and never allowed to return legally.

The US isn't nearly as open to immigration as it used to be, especially post-9/11. Nowadays, unless you fit a very particular set of criteria, they basically don't want you.

Some areas of Australia have great music scenes - Melbourne's scene is great, and Perth is up-and-coming. I'd say it's definitely worth a look.

D.A.R.K. · #13 02-22-2011, 12:25 PM

you are a member of the eu and are thinking of coming to the us? i would check out my options a bit further before making any decisions...

IconBasser · #14 02-22-2011, 01:33 PM

dunno much about New York, but whatever you do, don't bother coming to California. It sucks here right now.

jaywa · #15 02-22-2011, 01:34 PM

Come on over... but only if you bring a few dozen of your hottest Irish female friends with you.

bwv1013 · #16 02-22-2011, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaywa

Come on over... but only if you bring 100 of your hottest Irish female friends with.

+1000. Irish girls FTW!

dj150888 · #17 02-22-2011, 01:39 PM

Sorry to go slightly OT guys, but I'm another Irish fella. I'm looking at a month or two on tour around the states at the start of next year. Whats the visa scenario for me? Do I need a work visa or a tourist visa? Our management will probably sort out all of this stuff, but I'm curious myself as to what the situation is over your ways.

I-Love-Ratm · #18 02-22-2011, 01:39 PM

Ha how much experience do you guys have with proper Irish girls? I'll leave them here thanks.

bwv1013 · #19 02-22-2011, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by I-Love-Ratm

Ha how much experience do you guys have with proper Irish girls? I'll leave them here thanks.

google just lied to me. i'm hurt.

Bassmingo · #20 02-22-2011, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by I-Love-Ratm

Ha how much experience do you guys have with proper Irish girls? I'll leave them here thanks.

+1million

i married american. irish women are so up their own asses...