Graduating high-school senior taking a year to live/work in EU. Need help with VISAS!!!!
I'm a graduating high school senior. I am enrolled in a university but have requested deferment for one year, a "gap-year", to live/work/travel in Europe. I know that with my US citizenship, I can stay in the Schengen territory for up to 90 days, and in the UK for up to six months, as a general visitor (i.e. I can be their strictly as a tourist, no working).
This is not what I want to do, though. What I need is a visa that allows me to work in a European country (I want to stay in one of the Schengen countries or the UK) and stay there for a period of one year. I would greatly appreciate ANY suggestions/advice/help!!!!
I've spent hours looking at foreign embassy sites, and it seems that for the conventional "work-visa", I need to have an employer in that country offer me a job and prove that there's no citizen in that country capable of that job... for me that seems a bit unrealistic.
I've heard of visas called temporary-residence visas and extended-stay or long-term-stay visas... If there are any visas like these or a visa that would simply allow me to stay in one of those countries for a year, then I could find "friendly" domestic jobs or farm-work and such for a cash payment. Names/requirements of this type of visa or advice on other routes of getting in would be really appreciated!
Thanks all in advance!!!
Reply to this Have you look at some studying in Europe. You may find a "light" language program who allow you a visa for a year.
Reply to this Hello Amiir 😊
Many European students can get temporary work permits for the US. Maybe it is also the same the other way around. I think this permit may have different conditions than the conventional work permit. I got one for Canada and spent time working there when I was a student. It would have been much more difficult or even impossilbe to get a conventional work permit. I was allowed to work in Canada for a year. I would have also been able to get a temporary work permit for the US. At the time I was going to the US, I did not have enough money to cover the cost of the permit, so I worked illegally in the US.
Mel
Reply to this Hey Mel! There's a "temporary" and "seasonal" work permit for France, but the only page that the French Embassy site offers that lists the jobs that are covered by that, as well as the rules and outlines of the visa, is completely in French. Do you have any more information on this?
Thanks
Amir
Reply to this I got my temporary working visa for Canada from a student travel agency. The ticket, the work permit, a free first nights accomodation in Toronto and some other stuff came as a package for students. Do you have a travel agency at your university?
Reply to this I mentioned BUNAC before, but I just read that you want to stay abroad a year. I did a 6 month work visa in Scotland, but I had friends who combined that with a 4 month stay in Ireland. It's not quite a year but then you also get 90 days to wander the Schengen zone. Working gave me enough money to do quite a bit of touring as well. I'm starting to get Wanderlust again!
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