does one have to pay a visa and work permit fee to come to the US from the UK?

Answer 1

Yes there are fees involved. HOWEVER, the most important question is whether or not you will qualify for a visa and/or work authorization. US laws do not allow just anyone to come and work. Unless you are starting your own business, you will probably need a company to petition for you. Check out the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov.

If you are a citizen of the UK, and you wish to just visit (and not work) you can enter under the Visa Waiver Program.

Answer 2

Yes, you do. There are different visas depending on what you want to do, and these have different upper age limits. For some, you have to go through an organisation like BUNAC (www.bunac.org). The best information source for US visas and work permits is the US Embassy, as they will have the latest information.

Answer 3

there are some fees involved but , ususally your employer is the one who does all the paper work and pay the fee ...
here is what the USCIS says about this :
Employment Authorization

U.S. employers must check to make sure all employees, regardless of citizenship or national origin, are allowed to work in the United States. If you are not a citizen or a lawful permanent resident, you may need to apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to prove you may work in the United States.

USCIS issues Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) in the following categories:



EAD: This document proves you are allowed to work in the United States.
Renewal EAD: You should apply for a renewal EAD six months before your original EAD expires.
Replacement EAD: This document replaces a lost, stolen, or mutilated EAD. A replacement EAD also replaces an EAD that was issued with incorrect information, such as a misspelled name.
Interim EAD: If USCIS does not approve or deny your EAD application within 90 days (within 30 days for an asylum applicant; note: asylum applicants are eligible to file for EADs only after waiting 150 days from the date they filed their properly completed original asylum applications), you may request an interim EAD document.
here :
About Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification



About Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification

PURPOSE
The Immigration Reform and Control Act made all U.S. employers responsible to verify the employment eligibility and identity of all employees hired to work in the United States after November 6, 1986. To implement the law, employers are required to complete Employment Eligibility Verification forms (Form I-9) for all employees, including U.S. citizens.

FOR WHO MUST EMPLOYERS COMPLETE FORM I-9?
Every U.S. employer must have a Form I-9 in its files for each new employee, unless:

the employee was hired before November 7, 1986, and has been continuously employed by the same employer.
Form I-9 need not be completed for those individuals:
providing domestic services in a private household that are sporadic, irregular, or intermittent;
providing services for the employer as an independent contractor (i.e. carry on independent business, contract to do a piece of work according to their own means and methods and are subject to control only as to results for whom the employer does not set work hours or provide necessary tools to do the job, or whom the employer does not have authority to hire and fire); and
providing services for the employer, under a contract, subcontract, or exchange entered into after November 6, 1986. (In such cases, the contractor is the employer for I-9 purposes; for example, a temporary employment agency.)
CURRENT VERSION OF FORM I-9
The current version of the Form I-9 and the Handbook for Employers are dated "(Rev. 5/31/5)Y", "(Rev. 05/31/5)N", or "(Rev. 11/21/91)N".

WHAT SHOULD BE DONE WITH FORMS I-9 AFTER THEY ARE COMPLETED?
Unlike tax forms, for example, I-9 forms are not filed with the U.S. government. The requirement is for employers to maintain I-9 records in its own files for 3 years after the date of hire or 1 year after the date the employee's employment is terminated, whichever is later. This means that Form I-9 need to be retained for all current employees, as well as terminated employees whose records remain within the retention period. Form I-9 records may be stored at the worksite to which they relate or at a company headquarters (or other) location, but the storage choice must make it possible for the documents to be transmitted to the worksite within 3 days of an official request for production of the documents for inspection. Note: U.S. immigration law does not prescribe or proscribe storage of a private employer’s I-9 records in employee personnel files. As a practical matter, however, particularly if a large number of employees are involved, it may be difficult to extract records from individual personnel files in time to meet a 3-day deadline for production of I-9 records for official inspection.

DISCRIMINATION
The law protects certain individuals from unfair immigration-related employment practices of a U.S. employer, including refusal to employ based on a future expiration date of a current employment authorization document. The U.S. government entity charged with oversight of the laws protecting against unfair immigration-related employment practices is the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices, which is part of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

and :
EMPLOYEE’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9
A new employee must complete Section 1 of a Form I-9 no later than close of business on his/her first day of work. The employee’s signature holds him/her responsible for the accuracy of the information provided. The employer is responsible for ensuring that the employee completes Section 1 in full. No documentation from the employee is required to substantiate Section 1 information provided by the employee.

EMPLOYER’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9
The employer is responsible ensuring completion of the entire form. No later than close of business on the employee’s third day of employment services, the employer must complete section 2 of the Form I-9. The employer must review documentation presented by the employee and record document information of the form. Proper documentation establishes both that the employee is authorized to work in the U.S. and that the employee who presents the employment authorization document is the person to whom it was issued. The employer should supply to the employee the official list of acceptable documents for establishing identity and work eligibility. The employer may accept any List A document, establishing both identity and work eligibility, or combination of a List B document (establishing identity) and List C document (establishing work eligibility), that the employee chooses from the list to present (the documentation presented is not required to substantiate information provided in Section 1). The employer must examine the document(s) and accept them if they reasonably appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee who presents them. Requesting more or different documentation than the minimum necessary to meet this requirement may constitute an unfair immigration-related employment practice. If the documentation presented by an employee does not reasonably appear to be genuine or relate to the employee who presents them, employers must refuse acceptance and ask for other documentation from the list of acceptable documents that meets the requirements. An employer should not continue to employ an employee who cannot present documentation that meets the requirements.

EMPLOYEE’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9
A new employee must complete Section 1 of a Form I-9 no later than close of business on his/her first day of work. The employee’s signature holds him/her responsible for the accuracy of the information provided. The employer is responsible for ensuring that the employee completes Section 1 in full. No documentation from the employee is required to substantiate Section 1 information provided by the employee.

EMPLOYER’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9
The employer is responsible ensuring completion of the entire form. No later than close of business on the employee’s third day of employment services, the employer must complete section 2 of the Form I-9. The employer must review documentation presented by the employee and record document information of the form. Proper documentation establishes both that the employee is authorized to work in the U.S. and that the employee who presents the employment authorization document is the person to whom it was issued. The employer should supply to the employee the official list of acceptable documents for establishing identity and work eligibility. The employer may accept any List A document, establishing both identity and work eligibility, or combination of a List B document (establishing identity) and List C document (establishing work eligibility), that the employee chooses from the list to present (the documentation presented is not required to substantiate information provided in Section 1). The employer must examine the document(s) and accept them if they reasonably appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee who presents them. Requesting more or different documentation than the minimum necessary to meet this requirement may constitute an unfair immigration-related employment practice. If the documentation presented by an employee does not reasonably appear to be genuine or relate to the employee who presents them, employers must refuse acceptance and ask for other documentation from the list of acceptable documents that meets the requirements. An employer should not continue to employ an employee who cannot present documentation that meets the requirements.
if you would like to read more about it ? here is the link :

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=0572194d3e88d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=1847c9ee2f82b010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD