E3 visa - what you need to know

I guess I will cover the E3 visa first since it is the one on most Aussie's mind. The short version is that it is a great visa. If you can get an E3, you , your spouse (with marriage certificate) and your children can start a new life in America. Your spouse automatically gets a work visa as well. It is quite cheap compared to other visas and it can also be indefinitely renewed. There is also no age limit like the ones for the UK.

The cons are that will never covert into a greencard. That means that if you want to become a permanent resident and later on a US citizen this will not get you there. Unless they change the regulations, which I don't foresee in the near future.

The E3 is dependent on you having a Bachelor's degree and the job you are filling needs to require a Bachelor's degree and an employee willing to sponsor you. You cannot obtain it first then look for work. The job offer must be in place before you are eligible.

Due to this requirement the easiest way is to work for a company that wants to send you over to the US. Now for most people this is not a viable option unless you get lucky.

The self propelled option is to come to the US on a tourist visa and start looking for work. Aussies get an automatic tourist visa of 3 months when they arrive here. You can also get a multiple re-entry visa for 1 to 10 years. BUT make sure you leave the county on what we call a 'visa run' every 6 months so that you can get a new visa for another 6 months.

Once on US soil you can get an apartment, stay with a friend and start looking for work. Hopefully you will have the luck and timing to find something before your first 3 months is up.

This works quite well for the IT and anything computer related. However, it is a harder project for all other industries.