We had a lot of people asking about J-1 visas and specifically, we had a lot of individuals asking
about the J-1 visa 2-year requirement. For those of you who don't have a J-1 visa or if you do and
you're not familiar with the two-year requirement, some J-1 visas have a requirement that after you
complete your time in the US on the J-1 visa, you have to return to your country and live there for
two years. You have to physically reside, you have to return to your country for two years.
The J-1 visa is what they call, it's not a dual intent visa, which means that when you come on a
J-1 visa your intent is that you're coming to the United States with the intent to be here
temporarily, not long-term, not to adjust your status to receive a green card. Part of that, as I
mentioned, is that some J-1 visas have a two-year requirement you have to return to your country.
In general, if you have a two-year requirement on your visa itself, it'll say two-year
physical presence or two-year residency requirement
that there is one or it'll say no to your physical presence requirement. If you aren't sure,
there is a way that you can get something called an advisory opinion.
The Department of State has information on how to obtain an advisory opinion
to find out whether or not you have that two-year residency requirement.
I have seen individuals where
on their visa it says that there isn't a requirement but on other documents they
received there is. It is possible that there is contradictory information so
it's very important that you know whether or not you have that two-year residency requirement.
That is how you can find out if you aren't sure is to request this advisory opinion.
What happens if you are here on your J-1 visa and you fall in love
and then you think, "I want to be able to start my life here in the United States.
We want to stay together. We don't want to be apart. What are my options? I have
this requirement that I have to return to my home country for two years. We don't want to be apart."
There is a way that you can ask for a waiver of that requirement and the most common way,
the path of least resistance rather, is to see if the country of origin where you're from,
the government of that country if they will
give you something called a No Objection Statement.
the reason that the J-1 visas typically have that two-year requirement is because a government
whether it's the US or the government of your country has provided financial assistance for you
to come typically to gain skills that will help for you to go back and fulfill a special area
of expertise in your country of origin and be able to provide
services. Because you've received that funding, that is why they would have that
2-year residency requirement but you can ask for a No Objection Statement from your government.
If you're able to obtain that No Objection Statement, then that would be what would
allow you to be able to move forward and complete the green card process. If you don't receive a No
Objection Statement, there are a few other ways that you can still request the waiver.
You can get a waiver for an interested US government agency. If the US government wanted
to assist you with providing a waiver, that's a pretty rare case but that could be.
If you would be persecuted in your home country, that's another way to receive a waiver.
The other way is exceptional hardship to a US citizen or a child.
Immigration has extreme hardship and exceptional hardship.
Exceptional hardship is the highest level of hardship
and essentially that means that the US citizen would suffer more than just mere separation
more than suffering just by being apart or financially. It has to be something really
really serious but that would be another way that you could get a waiver of that requirement.
The other thing I've had people ask is, "If I don't get the No Objection Statement
and if I don't get a waiver but I complete my two years, at what point can I file
for my green card?" You have to wait to complete those full two years and then you can begin
the green card process. I hope that gives you some clarity,
some general information on J-1 visas and that waiver of the residency requirement.