Immigration guide to life in Los Angeles

#AmericanImmigration# Introduction When immigrating to the United States and living in Los Angeles, what common sense and benefits do you need to know? I believe many people are not particularly familiar with it. I would like to share with you a guide to living as an immigrant in Los Angeles, USA. I hope you can adapt as soon as possible.

1. Introduction to common sense about immigrant life in the United States

Mediterranean climate

Southern California is rich in oranges, and corresponds to the Big Apple in New York. Los Angeles has the nickname Big Orange. In terms of climate type, Los Angeles has a subtropical Mediterranean climate (K?ppen classification), characterized by dry and high temperatures in summer and warm and humid winters. Generally speaking, there is less precipitation throughout the year and little temperature difference throughout the year.

Another famous feature of Los Angeles is the California sunshine. The sunshine in Southern California is strong, and many times even if the temperature is not high, you can feel a heat wave under the sun.

It is also worth mentioning that due to the lack of water resources in the Los Angeles area, green belts need to be artificially irrigated. Therefore, a city’s affluence can often be seen in its green appearance.

The urban area is huge

Los Angeles is the second largest city in the United States. The urban agglomeration of Southern California with Los Angeles as its core is also the second largest metropolitan area in the United States and is a veritable giant city.

Metropolitan area population 13,131,431 people: Compared with the 7,092,596 people in the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California, the Los Angeles metropolitan area has almost double the population. At the same time, the population is also larger than the 8,416,535 people in Greater London, UK, and the 12,005,077 people in Ile-de-France, France.

The metropolitan area is 12,562 square kilometers: in comparison, the island of Taiwan has an area of ??36,193 square kilometers, and the municipality of Shanghai has an area of ??6,340.5 square kilometers. The area of ??the Los Angeles metropolitan area is approximately one-third of the island of Taiwan, or twice the size of Shanghai.

Economically developed

Gross product value is US$860.4 billion (Brookings Institution 2014 data): lower than Tokyo (US$1,616 billion) and New York (US$1,403 billion), ranking third in the world Three, higher than Seoul (USD 845.9 billion), London (USD 835.6 billion) and Paris (USD 715 billion). Close to the GDP of the Netherlands ($866.354 billion).

Industrial and Entertainment Center

As the second largest city in the United States, Los Angeles is of course an industrial center. Based on its development direction, it is also one of the world's leading entertainment centers. In terms of scale, about 23 of the Fortune 500 companies have their headquarters located in Los Angeles. Home to Hollywood and some well-known emerging IT companies,

The West Coast Academic Capital

Los Angeles is one of the cities with the largest scientific research output in the world. Los Angeles is the only city in Southern California, which has several It is home to one of the world's top research universities, as well as many teaching universities and community colleges. The talent pool is endless, so it is also a popular study abroad destination.

There are many here, including Caltech, UCLA, University of Southern California, as well as California State University, California State University at Los Angeles, Antioch University, Loyola Marymount University, Loyola Law School, Mount Saint Mary's College, Occidental College, etc. The world-famous Hollywood is also located in the city, which together adds a lot of cultural flavor to the city.

Los Angeles is an ultimate city.

If you like sunshine, beaches, waves, and cacti, this must be your ideal place;

What you love If you commute by driving and love sports, this place will definitely provide you with ideal conditions;

If you yearn for international exchanges and seek life development, there will be many opportunities waiting for you here.

2. Is it easy to find a job when immigrating to Los Angeles?

According to data recently released by the U.S. Department of Labor, the number of newly unemployed people in the United States fell to the lowest level in nearly five months last week, indicating that U.S. economic growth is supported by strong employment. In the week ending July 15, the number of newly unemployed people in the United States fell by 15,000 to 233,000, lower than the 245,000 previously expected by economists. This is the lowest level since February this year.

If you want to immigrate to Los Angeles, which district should you choose?

In the United States, Los Angeles is the most suitable for human habitation among all cities in the United States, and is the second largest city in the United States. Los Angeles is divided into four major areas, and the population changes in each area are different. In the East and West Sides of Los Angeles, these are the areas where the largest number of Chinese immigrants have migrated to Los Angeles. Although there are countless Chinese immigrants in both the East and West sides of Los Angeles, the population of the East and West sides of Los Angeles also changes greatly. This is very closely related to all aspects of Los Angeles culture. So which district is best for immigrants in Los Angeles?

The East Side of Los Angeles is home to 60% Chinese. Here is like Shanghai in China. You can communicate with others everywhere without speaking a foreign language just like in China, because the vast majority of people here are Chinese and everyone speaks Chinese.

Most of the people living in the West Side of Los Angeles are white people. Compared with the East Side of Los Angeles, there are fewer Chinese in the West Side. The economic development of the East Side is slightly faster than that of the West Side.

3. What benefits can you enjoy as an immigrant?

1. New-born children:

Any child born in the United States to a person (including illegal immigrants) in the United States is considered a U.S. citizen and holds a U.S. passport, and is not limited to The duration of residence outside the United States and the freedom to enter and exit the United States for life. After taking the oath, an 18-year-old citizen legally enjoys all the rights of a U.S. citizen, including immediately applying for U.S. immigration for spouses, children, and 21-year-old overseas parents.

2. Student tuition fees:

Before going to college at the age of 18, all primary and secondary schools in the United States implement compulsory education, that is, zero tuition (except for private schools). In contrast, it currently costs more than US$20,000 for one year for primary and secondary schools to study in the United States through relevant agencies in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. To attend university (including graduate and doctoral students), only local tuition fees are paid. Take California as an example. For the average California public universities, foreign students pay more than $12,000 a year in tuition, while "locals" only pay more than $2,000 a year in tuition at California State University. If a child completes three years of high school and four years of college education in the United States, he or she can save approximately RMB 500,000 in tuition fees alone.

3. Scholarships:

For ordinary Chinese who are interested in applying for scholarships at American universities, they can only compete with outstanding people from all over the world for a very limited number of scholarships open to foreigners. scholarship. But for those with green cards, the scope of scholarships they can enjoy is far beyond what a foreigner can apply for. Because many scholarship-issuing institutions in the United States limit scholarships to "Americans" (people with permanent residence in the United States). Therefore, after immigrating to the United States, children have a much greater chance of applying for scholarships than overseas students.

4. Student loans:

Green card holders over 18 years old can apply for various types of student loans in the year they get their green cards. For example, one year to attend an excellent private university in the United States. The tuition fee is about 30,000 U.S. dollars. When a green card holder wants to study for a two-year master's degree, a loan of 60,000 to 70,000 U.S. dollars can be obtained. If you can't find a job after graduation, you don't have to repay the loan. After you find a job, you can pay it off over the years. Usually, you only take 5 to 10 percent of your salary to repay the loan each month. In the United States, there is no one who cannot go to school due to financial difficulties.

5. Immediate family members benefit:

After a green card holder marries a foreigner, he or she can apply for a green card for his or her spouse and the spouse’s minor children under 21 years old.

6. The government helps find jobs:

The U.S. government has a special agency to find jobs for its own people for free. As long as green card holders register their skills, expertise and interests with this department, the department will find jobs for them for free. At the same time, the department also provides free training on basic skills (such as computers, English, etc.) for those waiting for employment to assist them in finding employment.

7. Freedom of employment:

Green card holders are not restricted from working in the United States. In order to protect the interests of its own people, many jobs in the United States (high-tech, biochemical, military and other research, production, and security work) are not open to foreigners, even if foreigners have the corresponding knowledge and expertise. This situation puts foreign students in extremely unequal competition with American students when looking for jobs after graduating from college. The green card holder does not need to worry, he or she can switch from the "disadvantaged party" to the "advantaged party".

8. Retirement benefits:

After accumulating ten years of tax payment records (the bottom line is the actual tax payment of about $50 per month), you can benefit from it after retirement (usually 65 years old) will receive a pension from the U.S. federal government for life ($1,000 to $1,200 per month). For many immigrants, the number of years they receive pensions is greater than the number of years they work and pay taxes.

9. Unemployment benefits:

When the applicant, spouse or even children do not have a job after transferring to a green card, the government will find a job for you free of charge. After having six months of tax payment records, you can receive government benefits (amounts ranging from $400 to $1,200 per month) by reporting unemployment to the relevant local departments in the United States.

10. Life and funds:

Green card holders can enjoy some life and fund-linked insurance types that are not available in China but only in the United States, so that they can enjoy their retirement after retirement. Have more income.

11. Elderly medical insurance:

Medical expenses are quite high in the United States, but any "low-income" green card holder (without tax records) can apply for it after retirement. "Medical Card", you don't have to spend any money to see any medical treatment with the card. This can completely relieve the elderly suffering from diseases from their worries. For people who are not low-income, as long as they have a cumulative tax payment record of ten years, they only need to pay a small insurance premium after retirement, and they will not have to bear the medical expenses themselves.

12. House purchase subsidy:

Green card holders can apply to purchase apartments for low-income seniors after retirement. You can use about 35% of the market price to buy your own house in the United States built with state subsidies.

13. Government subsidies:

When a green card holder does not have a cumulative tax record of ten years before retirement, as long as he becomes a U.S. citizen, the government will directly provide him with the subsidy after retirement (age 65). Provide living allowance (more than $600 per month). I can enjoy this money even if I don’t live in the United States.