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Foreign physicians face far more serious obstacles to their immigration
to the U.S. than any other profession. Most foreign physicians come to the U.S. to serve in a medical residency. Most often the physician had to accept J-1 Visa status to complete that residency. U.S. Immigration Law requires that any foreign physician who accepts a J-1 to serve in a residency must return to their home country for two years before he or she will be eligible to obtain H-1B status or to apply for permanent residence.
There are several ways around this problem however.
First, some residency programs will allow foreign physicians to work in the residency under an H-1B visa if the physician can qualify. To qualify, the physician must have passed either the FLEX I & II or the USMLE Steps 1,2 & 3.
If this is not an option for you, then you must consider doing the residency under the J-1 Visa and obtaining a waiver of the two year foreign residency requirement. A waiver of the two year foreign residency requirement can be obtained if you are sponsored to work in a Healthcare Professionals Shortage Area as designated by the U.S. Department of Health, Bureau of Primary Health Care. You must perform primary healthcare in that HPSA for a minimum of three years. In addition, the waiver must be recommended by a U.S. Government Agency or the Department of Health of the State where the job is located. Not all states participate in this program. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will recommend waivers for positions located in a rural area.
The Appalachian Regional Commission will recommend a waiver for jobs located in Appalachia. The Veterans Administration will recommend a waiver for individuals who work for the Veterans Administration.
In 1999, Congress enacted a law which allowed foreign physicians to obtain a waiver of the labor certification requirement if they worked in a HPSA for five years. Labor Certifications now take shorter periods of time in many parts of the U.S. rendering this waiver very unattractive. |
