1.
The
J-1
Exchange
Visitor Program Skill List
U.S.
Department of
State
clarifies the Exchange Visitors Programs Skill List. Generally, individuals are
subject to the skills list in effect at the time that they enter the United
States to participate in a given program. Individuals
who entered U.S. to begin an exchange program after March 17, 1997 will be subject to the 1997 Skills List.
The J-1 visa holders may travel outside the United States, and upon reentry they shall continue to be governed by the appropriate
skills list, as long as they continue in the same program area.
Continuing education to obtain a further degree in the same area would not
constitute a change in the skills list.
It
is important to keep in mind that not all J-1 visa holders are subject to the
two-year home country requirement. The general rules are that if a person is in a graduate
medical training program or in a program that is funded by the U.S.
or the foreign government, then the two-year home country requirement applies. Also, if the person's area of
study is on the skills list that designates areas
of expertise needed by the person's country, then the two-
year home country requirement may apply as
well.
2. The J-1
Waiver Process
There are a variety of methods for applying for J-1 waivers, depending on the
facts of the particular case, but all waiver requests are processed through the
DOS, and it is up to the DOS to issue a recommendation to USCIS. The actual
decision on the waiver then comes from USCIS. A
waiver of the home residency requirement may be difficult to obtain and
always requires a significant amount of time to process. Therefore, one must
plan ahead and assure the waiver request is not inconsistent with your
nonimmigrant visa extension or application.
The J-1 waiver has evolved into a time-consuming process. The typical
interested government agency case can take up to 9 months to adjudicate.
Once the case reaches the DOS, processing times for interested government
agency waivers are estimated about 4.5 months, and the exceptional hardship waivers are estimated
about 8
months. If the DOS recommends a waiver, most USCIS Service Centers will take
about 3 - 4 months to issue the final waiver approval.
A waiver request based on either the sponsorship of an interested government agency or a “no objection” statement by the government of the
country of his or her nationality involves submission
of that statement together with the alien’s other
supporting documents. A waiver request based on other U.S. government agency sponsorship,
State health department request, or a “no objection” letter may only be
filed with the Department of State’s Waiver Review Division.
A waiver application based on either an
exceptional hardship or persecution claim must be filed on Form I-612
(Application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement). The I-612 must be accompanied by the
supporting documentation described on the form and the fee. A waiver application on Form I-612 should be
properly filed at an USCIS Service Center where the applicant is residing.
Before proceeding to adjudicate the application, DOS and/or USCIS officers will verify that
the applicant is indeed subject to the two-year home residence requirement, and will
not assume that the alien is subject to the requirement just because he or she
is filing the waiver application or even because another officer so indicated
during a prior proceeding on the DS-2019 form.
If the applicant is found to be subject to the requirement, the DOS and/or USCIS
officers
will check records indicating that an applicant may have resided in the country
of nationality or last foreign residence for at least two years following the termination of the exchange visitor program, and seek information about the
length of such residence. If the applicant is not found to be subject to the requirement,
DOS and/or USCIS will
reject the application and inform the applicant in writing of the basis of the
determination, together with instructions concerning application for permanent
resident status or change of nonimmigrant status, if appropriate.
According to Department of
State, regardless of the
type of waiver request, the cost of processing is the same. The agency
has set the fee, based on its calculation of the per unit cost of
processing waiver requests. The Department of
State charges
a fee to cover the cost of processing waivers of the two- year home country
requirement imposed on certain J-1 visa holders.
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