Alaina, the USA is one of the hardest countries to immigrate to. There are are few options however, and here are some of the main types of visas that might get you in:
Immigration Diversity (Green Card) Lottery: Every year the USA gives out a set number of visas to randomly selected applicants. Only problem is you have to be from a country that is eligible to even apply - i.e. one that has had a low number immigrate to the USA in the past five years. Sadly the UK is currently not included and is unlikely to be for the near future as too many Brits immigrate through other visas each year.
If you are from Northern Ireland you can apply though! Or if you hold a passport for a qualifying country you are eligible. Some people are lucky enought to hold dual passports so you just use the passport from the country that is eligible.
Marriage: Find an American man and marry him. It's still not straight forward (forget about drive through Las Vegas style weddings!) but it will get you in.
Family: If you have immediate family living in the USA you can apply for a 'Family following Family' visa. It has to be fairly immediate family though.
Education: You can apply for a student visa and study for qualifications in a USA college/ University. However, you are only allowed to stay for the duration of your studies, though IF you can find a company to employ you and sponsor your green card application once you qualify then some people get to stay that way. Therefore it is very important to choose the right course - a Fine Art degree will get you no-where (not exactly in demand in the US job market), whereas becoming a Nurse/ Doctor/ Scientist will have American companies head hunting you.
Bear in mind USA education is NOT cheap, and is more expensive for foreign students (i.e. non US citizens). When I looked into it, foreign students were charged nearly double the amount to that of US students. You also have to SHOW you have in a bank account enough money to live on for each year and also to pay for your schooling. The course I looked at was $6,000 dollars per semester but you needed $12,000 at your disposal ($6000 tuition fees, $6000 for living/ accomodation fees). So with two semesters per year you'd need to show you had $24,000 available. Then you'd have to show the same again when in year two and then again for any subsequent years. You don't have to spend it all, other than the tuition fees, you just have to show that it is available to you. You are also restricted in how many hours you can work outside of school as foreign student too, though there are ways round this.
Work: If you have a degree level professional qualification you can apply for an 'H1B' visa. This is limited in numbers and gets heavily subscribed, so again no guarantee. It's classed as a temporary visa, but if you can stay employed for long enough you can apply for 'permanent residency' status which gives you the right to live in the USA indefinitely.
Illegal Work: Lots of illegal immigrants in the USA! Not advised because you won't have much legal protection, no social security number, no-one will give you health insurance and if you get caught by the INS/ Cops you will be deported instantly and banned from re-entry for at least five years. Not advised...
Qualify in an in demand profession at a UK University: Nurses, some Doctors, Social Workers, some Teachers, College lecturers/ Professors, Scientists, High Level Business executives etc. will get you in. Basically you need to be qualified at a high level that an American company will be willing to sponsor you to come and work for them.
The most in demand profession in the USA? Probably Nursing (this is one of the reasons why I am training to be a Nurse
) as there is a big shortage of RN's and the prediction is that demand will continue to increase. There are a number of agencies recruiting foreign nurses, though some require a minimum of one years work experience and a BSc in Nursing as well as the professional RN registration. Even then, you still have to sit a Nursing exam to show that your level of training is at the standards of USA nurses (which you MUST pass), and the visa/ paperwork application can take a further nine months.
I plan on emigrating to the USA after I qualify and looked into this a few years back hence my knowledge. The good thing is that it helped me find my new career
The bad thing is that I'm having to spend four years in higher education!
Policies change all the time so keep an eye on various websites, particularly official American Government sites. These are a few that might be handy.
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1322.html
http://travel.state.gov/visa/visa_1750.html
http://www.us-immigration.com/
http://www.immigration-usa.com/law.html
http://www.workpermit.com/us/us.htm
And be very, very sceptical about some of these immigration lawyers advertising. They convince you that they can get you in if you pay them fees, though many times you just won't have the requirements to satisfy the immigration process so it's just money down the drain.
Saying that, IF you can find a really good immigration lawyer there are a few back door (ish) ways of getting in to the USA. Word of mouth and recommendations from others who've already used them is a good way of finding one. But you need a lawyer who knows all the immigration laws and how to get round them while still keeping above the law. Obviously since September the 11th the USA has tightened immigration policies considerably and it's only going to get worse.
Whatever you do, KEEP IT LEGAL. Under no circumstances try and get in under any dodgy schemes unless you don't mind being deported if found out and possibly risk a long term or even life time ban for re-entry.
For all it's faults it's a great country to live in, on average the cost of living is cheaper than the UK, the standard of living is generally higher and the wages are more than competitive. But before you decide and if you haven't already, take a long holiday to where you think you'd like to end up. Not everyone likes the American way of life so make sure it's really for you.
Other than that, good luck and maybe I'll see you over there sometime after 2010