Urgent Question for those on J1 1 year work visa!

chadlondon

Hi guys, obviously those of us on the J1 one year intern / work and travel visa have a great situation (on paper) - meaning we can work for a year here in the states...

Now, after lots of hard work being here on the visa for a bit I finally have some job interviews.

My fear is that in the interview process they will ask about my work authorization - obviously I'll be less appealing than Joe Bloggs from America if they find I can only work for one year... So what do you guys do to get around this in the interview? I'm worried I might get turned down stuff.

Any ideas???

lil_lisa

I found a job before coming over and they knew I'd be here for a year only. However, I've been applying for jobs anyway and looking around. I had an interview with one company and told them there was no visa issue. A few days later they offered me a job. As long as you don't sign a contract stating you'll work more than a year or whatever you should be fine. Then, once the year is up, make your excuses and leave. A lot of people only stay in some jobs for only a year anyway so it shouldn't be an issue.

Mentioning that you're only available for a year can have draw backs.

chadlondon

but if they specifically ask how long the visa is for??

Do you just tell them no limit or what?

lil_lisa

They usually don't ask. They ask if you require sponsorship or not, if you say no, they assume you have residency or a green card. In saying this, this was what happened to me, I don't know how other employers will act.

Harpy

lil_lisa wrote: »

I found a job before coming over and they knew I'd be here for a year only. However, I've been applying for jobs anyway and looking around. I had an interview with one company and told them there was no visa issue. A few days later they offered me a job. As long as you don't sign a contract stating you'll work more than a year or whatever you should be fine. Then, once the year is up, make your excuses and leave. A lot of people only stay in some jobs for only a year anyway so it shouldn't be an issue.

Mentioning that you're only available for a year can have draw backs.

hey lil lisa,
did your employer have any problems filling out the training plan form??like how did you bring that up did you just say it to them after they had offered you the job or what and also was it internships u applied for or just a normal job.
thanks.

chadlondon

someone told me over a private message to just start the job without a training plan and do this 2 months later - im sure that is against the rules though, but perhaps it works too...
I just hate the 'intern' terminology on the visa. Why they had to print it like that is beyond me... what is wrong with just saying one year work visa?!

shtory

I'm due to head over in November, my plan is to not make to much of a deal out of the training plan, just assure them they won't have to do any work after they hire me, try to make things as normal as possible. I was worried that CIEE do site visits to your employer, but it doesn't seem that they do.

lil_lisa

They'll only do a site visit if the company has less than 25 employees and makes a profit of less than $1m a year I think.