Living in another country

[sims2fan]

Living in England is fine for me. I went to college in the US and I loved it there I still have a American friends (including my best friend in the whole world) although I would love to visit but flying into the states would be too difficult.

I like England, not a huge fan of London but we are moving (tomorrow!) to Richmond which is in Surrey. I like that I don't get harrassed when I walk down the street but I am forever scared (irrationally) some new immgration rule will come in and I will be kicked out. I always seem to be in fear of this happening despite the fact that I am here legally (would never dream of doing it any other way) and have never done anything wrong or illegal. I still feel a lot safer than I have my whole life. I guess its because I fear everything will be taken away from me again.

Sorry for being depressing.

 

[theimp98]

Originally Posted by Sims2fan

Living in England is fine for me. I went to college in the US and I loved it there I still have a American friends (including my best friend in the whole world) although I would love to visit but flying into the states would be too difficult.

I . I like that I don't get harrassed when I walk down the street but I am forever scared (irrationally) some new immgration rule will come in and I will be kicked out. I always seem to be in fear of this happening despite the fact that I am here legally (would never dream of doing it any other way) and have never done anything wrong or illegal. I still feel a lot safer than I have my whole life. I guess its because I fear everything will be taken away from me again.

Sorry for being depressing.

i can understand,i was kicked out of Indo thanks to paper work screw up, after putting in a business,and getting a house. now i cant even see them. i do keep hopping that one day that people grow up and stop this stuff.

 

[sims2fan]

Originally Posted by theimp98

i can understand,i was kicked out of Indo thanks to paper work screw up, after putting in a business,and getting a house. now i cant even see them. i do keep hopping that one day that people grow up and stop this stuff.

I am so sorry about that! I really hope you can go back one day!

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by Sims2fan

Living in England is fine for me. I went to college in the US and I loved it there I still have a American friends (including my best friend in the whole world) although I would love to visit but flying into the states would be too difficult.

I like England, not a huge fan of London but we are moving (tomorrow!) to Richmond which is in Surrey. I like that I don't get harrassed when I walk down the street but I am forever scared (irrationally) some new immigration rule will come in and I will be kicked out. I always seem to be in fear of this happening despite the fact that I am here legally (would never dream of doing it any other way) and have never done anything wrong or illegal. I still feel a lot safer than I have my whole life. I guess its because I fear everything will be taken away from me again.

Sorry for being depressing.

Has your marriage changed your immigration status? Are you planning on becoming a British citizen? I hope you don't mind my asking - I'm simply curious about how it works in the U.K., and how other immigrants feel about naturalization.
I still have my U.S. citizenship; I used to think it would be easier here in the E.U. if I took German citizenship, but I want to retain my "identity" (and who knows, maybe we'll want to move back to the U.S. after retirement). Dual citizenship isn't permitted in my case (American married to a German/Western European).
Your being scared isn't irrational. I remember the tremendous amount of red tape I had to go through my first decade here, with work permits and temporary residence permits. I've been here so long now that all I have to worry about is getting my permanent residence permit stamp put in my latest passport. I can't vote here (but can vote in U.S. elections now), and my husband and I have to go through separate lines at airports etc., but otherwise I'm not disadvantaged in any way.

 

[sims2fan]

I came in on a marriage visa which allowed me to get married in the UK. I now have to apply for the leave to remain visa which allows me to stay here for two years and work. I had to wait for our move to apply because you need proof that you live together and my flat's lease was in my name. Once I have moved I will get an agency to apply for me and I have to provide them with all the paperwork.

The fear also comes from my Mother always telling me to be careful and not stand out in your points of view as this would lead to bad things. She grew up in the civil war of Lebanon (she almost got killed a bunch of times) in boarding school. I think she was always waiting for some big disaster and she passed this fear onto me as a child.

 

[yayi]

My dad was in the diplomatic corps. so I traveled a lot since I was 4 years old. Then I married a trader and again I lived in different parts of the world. Now I am back in my native Philippines. I still can't understand much of the Filipino psyche and they can't seem to get me either. But still, home is so much better.

 

[kittylover4ever]

Wow, such interesting stories...........thanks guys for sharing them!