Two year rule and second J1

[sandstorm 0]

Hi!

Lots of things happening here.

* Went to the US as a student on a J1 Visa to attend fourth year of college on an exchange program. Came back to Sweden in June 2012.

* The two year rule applies.

I now have a possibility for an internship in the US. I would write my Master's Thesis during that time, and therefore the internship would be in my Swedish education's scope. I would have to come back to Sweden afterwards to get my degree.

I could not find any information regarding the two year rule and a second J1 visa during that time. The embassy's homepage states the follwing:

You are required to fulfill this requirement by returning to your home country for a cumulative total period of at least two years. You are not prohibited from travelling to the U.S., but until you have fulfilled the two-year home-country physical presence requirement, you are not permitted to do any of the following:

Change status while in the U.S. to the nonimmigrant categories of temporary worker (H) or intracompany transferee ( L);

Adjust status while in the U.S. to immigrant visa/lawful permanent resident status (LPR);

Receive an immigrant visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate; or

Receive a temporary worker (H), intracompany transferee ( L), or fiancé (K)visa.

There is a provision in U.S. law for a waiver of this requirement by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), when applied for by the former exchange visitor and recommended by the Department of State, Waiver Review Division. Learn more about requesting a waiver.

Does anyone know about the possibility for a second J1 visa, about the two year rule or maybe how to waive it?

Thanks!

Edited November 27, 2012 by sandstorm

[a+j 77]

I've been in a similar situation in the past. Got a J1 with two year rule in 2009, and then a J1 without two year rule for another program with the same sponsor in 2010. It should therefore be possible, but I'm not aware of the specifics of requesting the visas. In my case, the Office of International Services of the university sponsoring my programs dealt with both processes. I'd suggest you ask your sponsor directly, they should be able to let you know. Good luck!

[sandstorm 0]

I've been in a similar situation in the past. Got a J1 with two year rule in 2009, and then a J1 without two year rule for another program with the same sponsor in 2010. It should therefore be possible, but I'm not aware of the specifics of requesting the visas. In my case, the Office of International Services of the university sponsoring my programs dealt with both processes. I'd suggest you ask your sponsor directly, they should be able to let you know. Good luck!

Thanks. It's nice to hear that it has been done, at least! The company with which to do the internship is large and probably has good resources to deal with these kind of issues. I will discuss the whole thing with my university in a few days, but I think that my university wants to send me and the company in the US wants to have me there.

If anyone else have had similar experience, please let me know!

[jaycali 415]

Thanks. It's nice to hear that it has been done, at least! The company with which to do the internship is large and probably has good resources to deal with these kind of issues. I will discuss the whole thing with my university in a few days, but I think that my university wants to send me and the company in the US wants to have me there. If anyone else have had similar experience, please let me know!

Do you know why the two year rule applies in your case? That would be relevant in the case of trying to get it waived. And, does the US company have an immigration attorney?

Edited November 27, 2012 by Jay Jay

[bigdog 376]

I've been in a similar situation in the past. Got a J1 with two year rule in 2009, and then a J1 without two year rule for another program with the same sponsor in 2010. It should therefore be possible, but I'm not aware of the specifics of requesting the visas. In my case, the Office of International Services of the university sponsoring my programs dealt with both processes. I'd suggest you ask your sponsor directly, they should be able to let you know. Good luck!

Very interesting and a great answer. I Learned something today.

[sandstorm 0]

Do you know why the two year rule applies in your case? That would be relevant in the case of trying to get it waived. And, does the US company have an immigration attorney?

The exchange year tuition was funded by my Swedish university, so it was probably because it falls under "If the exchange visitor is financed by the U.S. government or a foreign government for the purpose of coming to the U.S. on the J-1" since universities in Sweden are government funded

The company is NASA, so I would assume they have. I know a guy who is currently there on the same internship as I would potentially take over, and I have asked him to ask around as well.

[jaycali 415]

The exchange year tuition was funded by my Swedish university, so it was probably because it falls under "If the exchange visitor is financed by the U.S. government or a foreign government for the purpose of coming to the U.S. on the J-1" since universities in Sweden are government funded The company is NASA, so I would assume they have. I know a guy who is currently there on the same internship as I would potentially take over, and I have asked him to ask around as well.

Sounds like the two year rule applies because the Swedish government funded it. What you likely need is a No Objection Statement from the Swedish embassy in DC.

"Your home country government may issue a No Objection Statement through its embassy in Washington, DC directly to the Waiver Review Division that it has no objection to you not returning to your home country to satisfy the two-year home-country physical presence requirement and no objection to the possibility of you becoming a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. The No Objection Statement may also be issued by a designated ministry in your home country’s government and sent to the U.S. Chief of Mission, Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy within that country. The U.S. Embassy would then forward it directly to the Waiver Review Division." - http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1288.html#objection

Note that this does not apply to medical students with the two year rule.

In addition, NASA is a US federal agency. The same link contains this info:

"If you are working on a project for or of interest to a U.S. federal government agency, and that agency has determined that your departure for two years to fulfill the two-year home-country physical presence requirement would be detrimental to its interest, that agency may request an Interested Government Agency Waiver on your behalf. The Interested Government Agency request must be signed by the head of the agency or his or her designee and submitted directly to the Waiver Review Division."

Take my advise with a grain of salt though, as I have no experience with this waiver.

Edited November 27, 2012 by Jay Jay

[sandstorm 0]

Sounds like the two year rule applies because the Swedish government funded it. What you likely need is a No Objection Statement from the Swedish embassy in DC.

"Your home country government may issue a No Objection Statement through its embassy in Washington, DC directly to the Waiver Review Division that it has no objection to you not returning to your home country to satisfy the two-year home-country physical presence requirement and no objection to the possibility of you becoming a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. The No Objection Statement may also be issued by a designated ministry in your home country’s government and sent to the U.S. Chief of Mission, Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy within that country. The U.S. Embassy would then forward it directly to the Waiver Review Division." - http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1288.html#objection

Note that this does not apply to medical students with the two year rule.

Take my advise with a grain of salt though, as I have no experience with this waiver.

That is what I figured too. For now, all I really need to know if it is possible with a second J1 at all so that I can decide wheter to continue with the internship application or not. As long as there is some possibility to waive any obstacles, I'm happy for now Thanks!

Edited November 27, 2012 by sandstorm

[jaycali 415]

That is what I figured too. For now, all I really need to know if it is possible with a second J1 at all so that I can decide wheter to continue with the internship application or not. As long as there is some possibility to waive any obstacles, I'm happy for now Thanks!

Looks like I edited my post after you replied. Note the second waiver option i included as well. This may be applicable too as NASA is a federal government agency. Good luck!

Edited November 27, 2012 by Jay Jay

[a+j 77]

The exchange year tuition was funded by my Swedish university, so it was probably because it falls under "If the exchange visitor is financed by the U.S. government or a foreign government for the purpose of coming to the U.S. on the J-1" since universities in Sweden are government funded

I think this is the reason why my first J1 had the 2 year rule too. As an exchange visitor, I was funded by a government-financed Italian university.

The company is NASA, so I would assume they have. I know a guy who is currently there on the same internship as I would potentially take over, and I have asked him to ask around as well.

I'm guessing they definitely have an office that deals with visas for foreign personnel, so do address them your questions.

[sandstorm 0]

Thanks again. I will let you guys know what the people over there have to say.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

As far as I know, you can get another non-immigrant visa while you still have the 2-year HRR on you from the first. You cannot get an immigrant visa or otherwise become a permanent resident if the 2 year rule applies (but this is not what you are asking about). For instance, someone can get a J-1, then change to F-1, then go home and finish the 2-year residency requirement.

Edited November 27, 2012 by Harpa Timsah

[sandstorm 0]

As far as I know, you can get another non-immigrant visa while you still have the 2-year HRR on you from the first. You cannot get an immigrant visa or otherwise become a permanent resident if the 2 year rule applies (but this is not what you are asking about). For instance, someone can get a J-1, then change to F-1, then go home and finish the 2-year residency requirement.

This is what a helpful person at a Swedish organization which acts as a J1 intern visa sponsor also told me. The 2 year rule only applies for work visas. However, the answer from the American embassy in Sweden was that "you can't get another J1 until the two years have passed". The follow-up answers from the embassy were a bit unclear though, and I'm currently awaiting answers from the Swedish embassy in DC.

In any case, it does seem waivable if that turns out to be required. The Swedish embassy can issue the "No Objection" letter, and the process goes like this:

1. Apply for a visa wavier

2. Ask the Swedish embassy for a "No Objection" statement. The application should include my reasons for requesting the statement etc.

3. If the statement is issued, continue with the waive.

4. If the waiver is approved, it's possible to start applying for the new visa.

Another comment I got from a friend of a friend was that waiving the visa might not be the best solution, since that could affect future possibilities for work visas etc. I'm not sure exactly how, but will look into it. He suggested that I should try to extend my old visa instead, but as far as I can tell a new sponsor and new category (from student to intern) requires a new visa. Investigating!