One Way Green Card?

[OldBather]

We are all aware (I trust) that it is practically impossible (Due to the Green Card Lottery) for a UK (and EU) citizen to get a job/work in the USA.How is it then,while watching an episode of "Dinner Date" (TV Programme) there appeared an American guy who is working in London.My assumption is, that while we cannot work in the US,US citizens are allowed to work here?Can somebody enlighten me please.
BTW,please don't bombard my question with rants about immigration,that's not my point.

[emmie]

i can't see a reason why an American can't work here, he might be in banking, plenty of American companies abound in the capital.

[Islay]

It could be that he is working for an American company here and that his company moved him here.

[emmie]

see if helps

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=can+us+citizen+work+in+uk&;ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b&gfe_rd=cr&ei=t3zNWNO

[emmie]

I have dated any number of Americans who worked here.
their companies sponsor them very often.

[donny48]

My son works for an American bank and spends a considerable part of the year there with no problems about green cards etc.

[OldBather]

Yes,I can appreciate all that you say.It just sickens me that only approx 1% of UK citizens that want to work in the US can/are allowed to,and even those have to jump through incredible hoops to achieve that.As I say it is all one way.

[emmie]

you have to go through a process that's for sure.
you can get one,
http://www.visapro.com/green-cards.asp

[naomi24]

Lots of Americans work here - and lots of British people work in America.

[ABerrant]

The Green Card Lottery (Diversity Immigrant Visa program) is but one path to receiving a United States Permanent Resident Card (Green Card); it aims to diversify the immigrant population in the United States by selecting 50,000 applicants annually from countries with low rates of immigration in the five years prior.

The other paths are:

immigration through a family member
immigration through employment
immigration through investment (from 0.5 to 1 million US dollars)
immigration through refugee or asylum status
immigration approved by the Director of Central Intelligence
immigration through "The Registry" provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act

[woofgang]

Its not all one way when companies sponsor. My DH went and worked in the US and US employees come here. It doesn’t confer permanent residence rights in either direction and doesn’t confer any residence or work rights on spouses or children. Unsponsored I think its equally hard to move in either direction.

[EDDIE51]

US citizens working in the UK are normally 'sponsored' by their employer to do a job here, it does not grant residency , the sponsorship ends when the job finishes. (UK citizens can also be 'sponsored' to work in the USA for an employer.)
They can not come over here and look for work, their company must have a UK job for them and they are sent to do that job.
I used to work for the UK branch of Xerox Corporation which is based in New York, all the senior managers were US citizens who were seconded (sponsored) to work in the UK. Same applies to other US companies with branches in the UK.

[ToraToraTora]

".It just sickens me that only approx 1% of UK citizens that want to work in the US can/are allowed to" - considerably less than 1% of US who want to work here do so. It's more or less a mirror image of the US system here, usually an employer sponsors on either side of the pond.