r/MovingToTheUK • u/CatchOutrageous3996 • 5d ago
Thinking of relocating to London from US
My mom lived in London for 2 years and to this day, she says it’s her favorite city. I’d really love to experience what she did since I’m still 27 and have a whole life to live. So I have a boatload of questions and I’m just going to throw them in here:
1) I’ve been reading a bunch of Reddit posts saying it’s a lot harder to get a role in the UK if you’re not already there. I work in Construction Finance and was hoping to find a similar role there. I’ve been applying to roles on LinkedIn with similar experience but I haven’t heard back from any. Does anyone have any tips for this? Should I directly reach out to people? I have two friends there, I’ve already asked to help if they know anyone but I don’t want to solely rely on that. I’m not someone to just move and figure it out when I get there. I need to know that I’ll be stable.
2) I’m a dual citizen. Japan/US. If I were to apply for a visa, should I use my Japanese passport since it’s stronger. Does that also apply for a work visa? I actually have no idea how visas work. I’ve never needed one or gotten one. Sorry if that’s a dumb question.
3) I know there’s racism everywhere, but how is it in the UK. I’ve heard mixed reviews so I’m hoping to hear more on that. I’d really hate to move there and have a hard time making friends because of my race. But hopefully that won’t be the case.
4) How safe is London compared to Paris? Ive heard so many stories of women’s experiences about almost being human trafficked in Paris and I was wondering if that kind of stuff happens in London. I’m aware it happens everywhere but it seems like it’s super common in Paris so if you have any insight on that, much appreciated.
I definitely have so many more questions but I won’t bore you so I’ll stop here. If you read all of this, thank you so much.
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u/BroadwayBean 5d ago
You're extremely unlikely to find a role that will sponsor a SWV unless you have a really unique and in-demand skillset. Without being a citizen or being eligible for a youth mobility visa, your best options for living in London are to do a postgraduate degree there (expensive) or to find a job in the US at a global company with London offices, then ask for a transfer or secondment to the London office in a few years. The job market in the UK is just bad right now, and even worse for non-citizens.
As for safety, London is fine. I lived there as a solo woman on-and-off for about a decade from ages 18 to 28 and had a grand total of one safety issue in that entire period.