MOVING TO HAWAII TO LIVE AND WORK
If you’re a foreign national who longs to live in Hawaii, there
are several ways you can make that happen, even without a green
card (permanent resident status). Some visas are much easier to get
than others, and the type you get will determine how long you’ll be
able to reside legally in Hawaii and if you’ll be allowed to get a
job during your stay.
Visitor Visa
A visitor visa is probably the easiest type of visa to get, and
if you’re coming from one of the 35 countries that participates in
the Visa Waiver Program, you won’t need a visa at all — just pack
your bags, grab your passport, and come to Hawaii.
Here’s the catch: The longest you’ll be able to stay in Hawaii
is three months, and you won’t be able to work if you’re on the B-2
(“tourist”) visa.
Student Visa
Another visa that’s fairly easy to get is a student visa. To be
eligible, you must enroll in an approved school and take at least
18 hours per week of coursework. When you apply for a student visa,
you can also apply for a separate but related visa that will allow
you to bring your spouse and children with you to Hawaii. Once you
receive your visa, you’ll be allowed to remain in Hawaii until your
approved course of study is finished.
Exchange Visitor Visa
Exchange visitor visas are designed to allow people from all
over the world to share their culture and knowledge with other
countries. To obtain this type of visa, you must be accepted into a
certified Student and Exchange Visitor Program.
The programs are administered by institutions across the globe,
some of which are in Hawaii. However, just because you are accepted
into a program doesn’t mean you will be assigned to the location in
Hawaii.
Like the student visa, the exchange visitor visa allows your
spouse and children to accompany you to Hawaii on a related visa.
You are allowed to remain in Hawaii for the duration of your
exchange program.
Temporary Worker Visa
Temporary worker visas can be more difficult to get than the
previously discussed visas, because they require a prospective
employer to file a petition on your behalf. That petition must then
be approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services before
you can even apply for the visa.
The payoff for jumping through these hoops is that you’ll be
allowed to earn money during your stay in Hawaii, which will last
as long as you work for your sponsoring employer.
Immigrant Visa (Green Card)
Immigrant visas — also known as green cards — are the hardest to
get. But once you have one, you can reside in Hawaii permanently
and change jobs whenever you like. In most cases, to apply for a
green card, you must be sponsored by a prospective employer or a
family member who is a U.S. citizen or green-card holder.
Roughly 140,000 employment-based green cards are granted each
year. The five categories of workers who are eligible to apply are
(in order of preference):
1. Those with national or international acclaim in the sciences,
arts, education, business, or athletics; internationally recognized
professors and researchers; and multinational managers or
executives.
2. Professionals holding a post-baccalaureate degree or a
baccalaureate degree plus five years of experience in their
profession; and people with extraordinary abilities in the
sciences, arts, or business.
3. Skilled workers in jobs requiring two years of training or
work experience; professionals in jobs requiring at least a
baccalaureate degree; and unskilled workers in jobs requiring less
than two years of training or work experience.
4. Certain special immigrants, including broadcasters, religious
workers, physicians, Armed Forces members, Iraqi/Afghan
translators, and more.
5. People who invest $500,000-$1 million (depending on the
unemployment rate in the geographic area) in a business that
creates at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers, not including
the investor and their family.
Green cards can also be sponsored by certain family members.
Those eligible for family-based green cards are (in order of
preference):
1. Spouses, unmarried children under 21, adopted orphans, and
parents of a U.S. citizen. If you are a parent of a U.S. citizen,
your child must be at least 21 years old to sponsor you.
2. Unmarried children age 21 and over — and any of their own
minor children — of a U.S. citizen.
3. Spouses, minor children, and unmarried children age 21 and
over of green-card holders.
4. Married children and their spouses and own minor children of
a U.S. citizen.
5. Siblings — and their spouses and minor children — of a U.S.
citizen age 21 and over.
Because there are more qualified applicants than available green
cards per year (except for the first-preference category, which
doesn’t have an annual limit), most family-based green-card
applicants must wait for years until it’s their turn (based on the
date they filed their application) to get the next available green
card in their category.
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