I have a family and want to immigrate for their sake.
I do not have a degree and most likely will not get one at this point in time. Are there any countries where I can apply for jobs without a degree that will provide me and mine permanent residence?
If I had a degree I could get a TN1 VISA, in 6 months I'll have enough work exp to qualify anyway (12 years). I could get an H1B but it seems like too much hassle.
The UK will apparently accept me, I have to say there's a world of difference between UK and US immigration, anytime I've dealt with US immigration I felt like wanting to do anything another than vacation in the US was criminal. In the UK however they seemed A OK as long as I had a return flight, they were even friendly.
Although it didn't pan out as I was extremely jet lagged, sleep deprived and bombed the interview I'd highly recommend talking to Facebook, their people were super accommodating and really went the extra mile to get talent on board. They basically figured out all my VISA options worldwide for me.
Some weird grumpy people at the border that you might deal with for 5 hours a year tops seems a bit out of proportion. Plus SFO is pretty friendly as far as us border people go. They wont treat you as a criminal if you have the H1-B visa already anyway.
For the TN-1 visa, these "weird grumpy people" may, during any one of those visits, choose to deny you re-entry, completely at their whim. And there's nothing you can do about it if they do.
The scariest part is when your applying for the TN visa at the border. Make sure your hiring company lawyers draft the letter properly and possibly bring proof it's a real company if it's a new startup and so on. Don't do it yourself. Don't act like your trying to commit fraud with them because your nervous, and stick to whatever your paperwork says. If it says 'computer systems analyst', your job is a computer systems analyst. Not lead CSA, just CSA. Same with 'graphic designer', 'accountant' and so on.
Apple looked like they were paying about ~$10K more than here which is easily eaten by rent.
What's going rate for an Lead iOS Engineer with 12 years exp? (4 on iOS)
You get stock/bonus compensation on top of that. If it's a startup then your getting non-liquid stock for the chance of a big payout later. For a publicly traded company, you pretty much treat it as an extra amount of cash that can amount to another $20-40k+.
That H1B salary searcher is diluted by guys that aren't paid that well at Wipro for example and doesn't include other forms of compensation. I also don't know if it includes raises over time. You also get such things as all 3 meals, gyms, etc which can amount to another $300-700/month. Everything is more expensive in Canada & the UK. If you live in a non income tax state, your income tax is reduced by another %10. California total income tax is about the same as BC, but WA is definitely lower than anywhere in Canada. Your employed so you have health care too.
Of course if you want to do research at Google you'll need a PHD. However 99% of dev positions don't require even a BS.
It is not a simple or quick process to get PR in aus though, took me 18 months.
I went the 157 route, took longer but you're much safer.
There is a program called "Informa" [2] which validates the knowledge of experienced craftsmen and gives them a chance to receive the same kind of degree like apprentice graduates. Which also makes them eligible to further education paths, like higher professional schools (to get a diploma if you like).
If you want to move to Switzerland, you don't have to worry about the language. Many IT-companies here are multi cultural and speak both German and English. We have a high quality of life here, the goverment is friendly and our laws favours employees.
I work for a small but successful company in Zurich. We'll move to a bigger office in January 2014 and need skilled developers to fill it :) We mainly create web applications and other cloud solutions, but also windows apps and banking software. We primarily use C#. Oh... and we don't care about certificates and degrees. We need skill, not paper.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me - dashdot at dashdot dot ch.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_education_system [2] http://www.informa.modellf.ch/index.html
Apartment, moving (suitcase + backbag), traveling & the rest was handled by me. When pulling from the right strings and being very determined gets you far.
> I have a family and want to immigrate for their sake.
I believe OP meant emigrate
Or the difference doesn't matter, because any large group of English speaking people will only use the word "immigrate" exclusively.
since you are with a family, things may be more complex. public education here is not very good (i understand; i don't have children, but it is one of the issues in the current elections). there are private schools, but that implies you have to earn more. but if you can earn a decent wage then life here is pretty good - friendly people, relatively little crime, a more relaxed pace of life, great weather, good, low priced, fresh food (but imported goods are more expensive), very stable politics (for s america).
downsides are large variations in wealth, and relatively little in the way of public services, compared to w europe (i am english) and a certain lack of experience with foreigners (which if you are dark skinned can be quite obvious, and often rather naive, racism). also, hours are long in many chilean companies (how long you are at your desk can seem more important than what you do).
i don't regret coming here, at all, but i am (relatively) well off (and, i realise i haven't said anywhere above, live with - but am not married to - a chilean, which makes life significantly easier when first finding your way around).
Anyway, I am a college dropout, and I am facing the exact same issue as you. Unfortunately, I just have four years of experience, which is too less for a non-graduate to get a work permit in most countries. I was applying for remote jobs for the past few weeks without too much luck. It is really hard for an Indian with 4 years of experience, and without any solid experience in Ruby/Python/Javascript-MVC (those seem to be the most popular skills in the market). I just got another job in another city in India, which pays a little more, but it is more than what I have, so I have decided to move for now, and will probably re-look my remote work/immigration plans after some years.
http://www.immd.gov.hk/en/services/hk-visas/quality-migrant-...
If you're under 40 and have 10 years of experience, there's your 80 points. (You also get 10 points for English. What a deal.)
When I was at Microsoft I hired a guy out of Russia who was self taught, but knew pretty much everything there was to know about Forward Error Correction in Mpeg Transport Streams. So we go him a work visa.
From the work Visa after a time you can convert to a Green Card.
Talk with a recruiter, find something they will need lots of that they can't find in the US. Learn everything there is to know, and get sponsored.
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/06/technology...
With a decade or more of experience, you might just qualify for something like an H1-B and apply for permanent residency while there.
Of course, perhaps you are already in the US and wanting to leave for elsewhere...
http://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/new-zealand-visa/work-visa/...
