working or tourist visa?

[lush11]

hi! I need your help! Im an nclex passer in cali. i'm a single mom here in the phils. i'm planning to get a tourist visa with my son this december. what are our chances in getting it? Coz from there i can look for possible employers instead of waiting here for a working visa? Pls. enlighten me regarding this matter. I'm so confused and don't know what to do first though i know there are lots of employers willing to petition but i want to know how long will it take. Thank you in advance.

[tylerjdyck]

A tourist visa will take around 3 months from start to finish. When you go for the interview for the visa, a customs agent will ask you some questions. It is the job of the customs agent to make sure you have full intentions of returning to the Philippines. If he suspects that you are going to USA to look for a job and may not return to the philippines, he will deny entry. I don't think it is a good idea to apply for the tourist visa in your situation. I would suggest seeking sponsorship or using a recruiting agency for a job offer. A recruiter can connect you with a healthcare facility in the US. Most recruiting firms will require the following:

1. You must have a nursing diploma.
2. At least two years of work experience as a nurse. (required by INS in form I-140)
3. Be a Registered Nurse in your home country or present evidence that your country does not have a nurses registration system.
4. Pass English and professional tests (NCLEX or CGFNS, TOEFL, TWE, TSE, VISASCREEN, CES) These tests are proof of your compitence to work as a nurse in the US.

Once you apply to the recruiting firm, they will most likely undergo a personality test (honesty, trustworthiness, attitude) as a method to screen their candidates. I say most firms because some smaller firms may not. I would trust a firm that does personality testing more because it shows they are not rushing the process.

At this point, the recruiting firm will search for a suitable job for you. A good firm will contact you with a job description and ask you if you would like to apply for the job. If you want to apply for the job, the recruiter will meet with the healthcare facility on your behalf. The healthcare facility will want to interview you over phone or webcam. You can expect between 2 to 5 interviews like this with the healthcare facility and the recruiter. The recruiter will negotiate terms with the facility on your behalf. Should the facility choose that they want to hire you, the immigration process will begin.

The healthcare facility will have to petition to the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service) under the I-140 EB3 form. The employer fills out the form and sends it away. Your son will be listed as a child of yours on the form and this should cover his visa into the US. Once you have perminent residence, you can remain under that status forever, or you can apply for citizenship, which is highly suggested. The petition will take between 3 and 6 months to be approved. Send as much information as possible to the recruiter or healthcare facility; whoever is filling out the petition. You DO NOT want them to reject the petition or you will be wasting a lot of time. Forgetting something may cost an extra few months.

The petition will be sent to the National Visa Center to be processed. Then NVC sends you the form to sign, then you send it back to them for final processing. This part can take 2-4 months for the whole thing. make sure everything is sent by you and your recruiter right away.

After the petition part is done, you will be notified by the US embassy to take a medical exam. The medical exam is at St. Luke’s Medical Center Extension Clinic (SLMCEC), located at 1177 J. Bocobo Street, Ermita, Manila.
If medical exam is passed, you are ready to book your flight. Most recruiting agencies will cover the one way flight.

Upon arriving in the US, your recruiter will have found a place for you to live close to your work and close to a school for your son. You will need to apply for a Social Security number. You can do this online. You will need this number to open up a bank account and to file taxes.

The entire process is usually around 8-16 months with 10-12 being quite average.
I hope this is sufficient information, please feel free to contact me if you have anymore questions. I can send you links to help you. Once again, I would strongly advise you not to apply for a tourist visa as you will most likely be denied entry into the United States under your circumstances.