Visa and US Army (I live in Poland)

Hello guys. Since I was a little kid I really wanted to join military. Now I'm in my mid 20s and I think it's right time to do that. I'm not gonna lie - US military is the one that I want.

As far as I know US citizenship is not required to join military. But I still need to get a green card.
In few months I'll finish my Bachelor's degree in Logistics. What's more I have couple years of work experience. There is probability that I could get a H-1B visa but I'm not sure if I want to go that way. I'd like to join military asap... this kind of job could be distracting and I can't say if I'd be able to leave it right away just to join military.

I really want to pursue my dreams and I'm really thinking about doing it. All help and advices appreciated.

PS. I live in Poland and I don't really have any family or friends that stayed in USA for longer period of time.

The answers you need are here: quora/How-can-a-European-citizen-join-the-U-S-Army-or-U-S-Navy

Scroll down and read the answer from Matt Pickering and the one following it.


But apparently it is needed to become an officer or serve in Special Ops. However it's also apparently easier for a foreigner to obtain citizenship once they're enlisted.

You really need to talk to the Army recruitment people directly. They'd be very helpful I'm sure.

goarmy.com

You'll want to use one of the recruiting stations in Germany, they cover Europe and the Middle East recruiting. They will pay for your flight to and from the recruiting station, and put you up during MEPS.

gutefrage.net/frage/als-deutscher-zur-us-army-gehen

Those recruitment stations are for Americans living in Europe, not for European citizens. The OP is not eligible to enlist until he has permanent residence status in the US or through the MAVNI program but apparently that's now on hold and in any case you have to meet very specific requirements to be eligible for it, for example have one of the skill sets/professions the army needs.

That's unfortunate, good luck to the OP, if the program opens up again and MOS 09L is available to you it's worth looking into, the DLI school in Monterey is great, and its a rewarding career.

So what options do I have?
MAVNI isn't going back any soon.
MOS 09L requires languages that are way too hard and complex to learn... I'd need like 10 years maybe?
Green card lottery is about 1% chance per year. And who knows if it won't be terminated in the future.
Green card via marriage. So far I haven't met any girls from USA. And even if I wanted a fake marriage than it would be still easy to recognize it.

What other options do I have? Did I miss something? And if I'm not mistaken H-1B is not immigration visa therefore this wouldn't qualify me to enlist, right?

Chat online to one of the army recruiters themselves, they might have some tips. Not being funny but would you consider the French Foreign Legion? Google them. They're a bit of a legend, used to be considered very tough and brutal but they're highly respected as fighters.

So I received an answer from one recruiter. He said that ofc only citizens and permanent resident are the options to enlist;


So I checked both of these and I'm really confused. I-551 is actually a green card. And G-845 is a confirmation of immigrant status.

Correct me if I'm wrong but G-845 is only for permanent residents. So still I need a green card to get it.

I tried to join ask a recruiter group on Facebook however they declined it. Also recruiter who mailed me back wrote that Army regulations prohibit them from assisting me. It explains the fb group situation.

I believe that I-140 A'KA the Green Card through employment should be my way to go. Since it's the most reliable atm. However it is the employer that sponsors it somehow. So even if I was lucky enough to be skilled in something that is on demand and then they choosed me than it could be some kind of long term contract or something. They wouldn't sponsor it if I was able to receive the card and just leave them with nothing.

And as for French Foreign Legion I'm not convinced it is what I want. Anyway thanks for help and advices. I appreciate it a lot.

Oh I just found a question about not joining a company that sponsored the green card. It might be possible to get it without working for them if I present myself for work and if the company says they don't have a job right now.

Lucky enough this might be the best possible option

It's a huge decision whatever route you take because ultimately it means that you are not just talking about joining an army, but about emigrating. Would you be doing that if it weren't for the army? That's something to consider. As for the French Foreign Legion, one thing you're pretty much guaranteed with them, is that you'll see live combat, if that's what appeals to you. Also you will get to train with the Americans as believe it or not, American troops, including the Marines are frequently trained by the Foreign Legion.