performers need to be

a) notable
b) have booked gigs

that philtripp guy was really good at this sort of advice. he doesn't post here anymore though.

musical career?

yeah phil's got great advice, check the latest issue of the AMID there's ten or so pages up the back with Phil's advice on how to succeed in the music biz

but right now i'm looking for USA visa advice. i wanna stay for a while

and i'm not noteable and i dont have any gigs booked

drug or assault convictions are frowned upon apparently.

''yeah phil's got great advice, check the latest issue of the AMID there's ten or so pages up the back with Phil's advice on how to succeed in the music biz''

haha ''succeed in the music biz''

lucky i don't have any convictions

your not notable, you have no gigs booked and on top of that you have no convictions, geez eastside, you better get yourself busy mate.

There is a green card lottery that you can enter. Google it...

Hetroasfuck won a green card but didn't end up going.

even DUI can be a problem

you're a wise man crackwhore, ever considered a career in clinical psychology????

i always appreciate your advice

wa, wa, what, when, why??? u flying solo???

we really need to catch up and i'll fill you in devo

thirsty??

ok so DUI is a problem it seems. can anyone answer this - i've got a drink driving charge from a few years back and the website 'advises' that a visa be applied for. this would ordinarily just be a transit visa as we've got an 18 hour stopover at LAX. i could call and get charged $11 dollars or $2.75 a minute to get an answer that should be free. i'm not going to take any chances with them but just want to get the facts straight. do i really need to fork out $150 and go for an interview for a stopover because i have a drink driving charge?

it's 6:15pm in LA now.

cool ta. i'll set my watch. but i'm talkign about december

that's Ok. I wear two watch's. 1 is my melbourne watch and my other is my LA watch. If you need a time check, just ask!

this non-profit place does US visa applications for musicians:

www.tamizdat.org
matthew@tamizdat.org

you can go on a tourist visa and not bring any instruments across the border, then just buy/hire them over there which might be cheaper than a visa.

One question which would be relevant for you Lordsnot is whether the questions/info required for working visas are required for tourist/stop-over visas (I have no idea, but presumably someone would know).

Following President Obama’s most recent State of the Union address, on January 31, 2012 USCIS released a Fact Sheet summarizing the President’s current actions and future goals with respect to attracting and retaining highly-skilled immigrants.

President Obama’s Goals:
Increase U.S. competitiveness by attracting new talent, businesses, investment, and creating the most skilled workforce in the world. Some of the possible initiatives introduced include:

Creating a “Startup Visa” for entrepreneurs
Strengthening the H-1B program
Automatic green card eligibility for foreign born graduates of US institutions in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) fields

you're a wealth of knowledge in this thread TS.

ha, well it was a costly exercise to go through it my lawyers so i'm happy to share the knowledge.

with my lawyers i mean

anyone been on an F-1 student visa before?
interview tips? did you work?

bump

I'm on a J1 visa at the moment because I'm on exchange at a U.S. university. I'm not working because I'm not supposed to (unless it's a job at the university).

so you're not inclined to look for a job at your college? or are there just not many opportunities/openings?

i'm looking at a 2 year course, so will need the cash flow of an on-campus job.

you're in nyc, yeah? where/what are you doing?

I'm at Barnard College/Columbia University for a semester. I don't really want a job at the college because I'm sure the pay would be terrible, and I'd rather spend my time exploring the city, but I saved up enough money before I left to make sure that I wouldn't need to work. Also, I'm getting youth allowance.

I think the most important thing about your visa ''interview'' is proving that you have enough money to be able to leave the country once your course is over. I brought along a bank statement, as well as letters from Melbourne Uni and Barnard, my travel itinerary, etc.

Also, bring a book and take it with you past security because you will be sitting in the waiting area for a long time. I stupidly left everything except my ID & supporting documents in my bag, and sat waiting with nothing to do except stare at the wall for over an hour.

cool, thanks.

yeah, money's probably my biggest issue. can probably convince them i have enough for the first year though.

Do you know anyone who could temporarily transfer enough money into your account? You just need a fairly recent official statement from your bank, they don't actually check how much is in there electronically.

Do you know anyone who could temporarily transfer enough money into your account?

yeah, i think i can arrange this somehow. thanks!

You're welcome.

update. i have an f-1! wooooooo.

thanks for the tip about bringing a book nabila. it made the hour in the waiting room fly by.

congrats rawr! i take it then you'll be at ucla - what are you studying?

Thanks trafficsounds! Actually I'm just visiting a friend at UCLA before heading over to UB to do Media Arts.

nice! sounds like a great program.

Congratulations rawr!

thanks! now to figure out how i'll pay for it all...