Coming to America

I'M COMING TO AMERICA! TODAY!

In the early 80s the words from Neil Diamond's song "America" could have rung true for many immigrants flocking to the USA, they could have "come to America, today"! However, after 9-11 it may seem that the lyrics to this song should be changed to "I'm coming to America - NOT!" Unfortunately, in today's political climate, the methods of attaining residency or citizenship have evolved into a fine art.

Don't let all this dismal talk get you down though, after all this is the reason why we have started publishing this series on Immigration to USA. After reading these articles on immigration you will not only be able to confidently determine your path to immigration but also to steer friends and family in the right direction. Thereby, increasing the number of some 70,000 South Africans already living in USA today.

In this our first article for South Africans Worldwide, I will briefly explain the alternative routes one could use to enter the USA before we begin analyzing the specific visas. Next month we will be analyzing the all-incumbent Diversity Visa, more commonly known as the GREEN CARD Lottery. So don't forget next month's issue to take a chance at living in the US!

For those of you readers that are not avid gamblers, there are more succinct ways of ensuring your stay in America. If you fall into one of the visa categories below, you may be eligible to live and work in the United States. Only some of these visas lend themselves to acquisition of permanent resident status (Green Cards) and finally citizenship. However, you will have to read the next few issues to be able to determine what is applicable to you.

The categories to live and or work in the US are as follows:
· Spouses of Permanent Residents or Citizens.
· Immediate Relatives of Permanent Residents or Citizens.
· Fiancés of Permanent Residents or Citizens.
· Nurses.
· Airline Crewmembers.
· Religious Workers.
· Foreign Media.
· Diplomatic Personnel.
· Cultural Exchange Visas.
· Internationally Recognized Entertainers or Athletes.
· International Organization Representatives.
· Treaty Trader or Investor Visa.
· Intracompany Transfer Visa.
· Sponsorship by an Employer.
· Students.
· Investment/Treaty Visa.

The visas mentioned above are a mix of both immigrant and non-immigrant visas. A non-immigrant is classified as a resident with temporary legal status to live and work in the United States. In the next few articles the emphasis will be on immigrant petitions, commonly referred to as legal permanent residency.

There are two methods of attaining legal permanent residency; firstly, through family relationships with U.S citizens or legal permanent residents and secondly, through employment. Employment visas are the L1A, L1B and H1B.

If you want to see how to come and live, work and play in the U.S.A, read our following issues. If however, you are too impatient to wait a whole month then feel free to email any of your questions directly to info@inkorpa.com or simply reference www.inkorpa.com for answers to questions that have already been asked on our Frequently Asked Questions Page.

Until the next issue then!
Signing off from the Land of Milk and Honey!

Mandy Jacob
President