[dotBen]

Fellow Brit who moved out here 4 years ago.. I say go for it, especially if Google are going to sponsor your H1B. Make sure you completely understand the visa process and timeline though (if it's H1B you may have to wait a period of time before you can actually move). Don't forget you could always move jobs in a year so Google is a great 'landing' into the Bay Area.

If you have 11 years experience $110k seems a little low but it might be more than you are getting in UK (I was always paid shit in UK) and cost of living is lower here in the Bay Area (even in SF compared to London). Google is known for paying a little lower than average AND they will expect you to really put in the hours. I don't know many Googlers who actually get to work on their 20% time projects, either.

I personally would move to the City (San Francisco) and commute down in the Google busses.

At this point there are not going to be many firms that will pay the ~$20k for the visa application so I say go for it and then reassess what you REALLY want to do while you are out here.

Best of luck!

[iampims]

Did your visa application cost $20k? It seems extremely high. I heard it's usually around $5K (fees + lawyers).

[tptacek]

The numbers we're getting are slightly south of that, too.

[dotBen]

In house, like Google, will have people on staff who do this as their job (ie costs lower).

A startup looking to sponsor an H1B, based on my experience, is going to be quoted ~$20k in legal + filing fees from a small-medium law firm (ie not Fenwick but not USAVisas.net either [made up site, you get my drift]).

[trustfundbaby]

I know the costs are a little higher if you have a certain percentage of h1-b employees on your staff. But 20K is a little out of control.

[eduardo_f]

We did it in a company I was working before and it was a little above $3k (in Chicago).

[andreshb]

It's actually that high. (H1B Visa, plus accompanying visa for family members)

[lemming]

Right, last I heard it was $5k for an H1B, around $10k for a Green Card.