Here at the Ranchod Law Group it is J1 Conrad 30 Waiver season. We are busy preparing J1 Conrad 30 waivers to ensure that we file our doctor’s applications expeditiously.
What are the Conrad 30 application trends for this year?
This year we have noticed a considerable decline in the number of applications in many states.
Specifically, California and Washington state have only received eight applications and Texas has 12 slots remaining. Last fiscal year Texas filled all of their slots while California had many more applicants.
If you are a physician and have not filed your J1 waiver application or are in the process of your job search you still may be able to file for a J1 Conrad 30 Waiver application in some of the most popular states( for Conrad 30 waiver applications).
Contact our office at 415-986-6186 to learn more about your J1 Waiver options.
Recently we obtained a no objection waiver for our Tanzanian client.
First we contacted the Tanzanian government via phone since there was no information on the website regarding the no objection statement. After a short while and a few explanations of the situation, we were routed through the offices and was connected with a Tanzanian Embassy representative who knew exactly what we were after.
The most important thing on his list was who we wanted this information for! We let the applicant remain anonymous and after being told that the applicant would have to call and get the procedure themselves, the representative rattled off a list of hurdles to cross and documents to send.
The best part of the story is this: we prepared the J-1 waiver application, sent the documents to the US State Department and sent the package of documents required by Tanzania to the Embassy. We got a positive answer within two months! It was amazing since processing times may be lengthy. Neither the applicant nor our offices were contacted and asked for any additional documents so maybe getting it right the first time helped. But with nothing in writing from the Tanzanian government regarding their requirements (it evidently is not the Tanzanian way) it was dicey. We’re glad it worked out and want you all to know that no matter how impossible it can seem to work with your government’s bureaucracy and our government’s bureaucracy the job can get done!
-Kaushik Ranchod
Attorney at Law
Ranchod Law Group
President Obama recognizes the importance of the Conrad 30 program by signing Public Law 111-9, on March 20, 2009.
This extends the date until Sept. 30, 2009 by which international medical graduates have to have been granted J-1 nonimmigrant status in order to later qualify for the “Conrad 30” program. Before this latest extension was granted, the most recent sunset date for qualifying J-1 admission was March 6, 2009.
Under the “Conrad 30” program, each state health department may submit a request directly to the Department of State (DOS) to initiate the waiver process for a J-1 medical doctor. This request enables J-1 doctors to obtain a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement, if DOS submits a favorable recommendation to USCIS and will generally be granted as long as there are no underlying concerns.
Once the waiver is granted, J-1 doctors must practice medicine for at least three years in a medically underserved shortage area or areas. The Department of Health and Human Services designates the medical shortage areas.
The Conrad 30 (originally Conrad 20) program was originally established in 1994 to address the shortage of qualified doctors in medically underserved areas, and has been extended several times since then. In 2004, Congress amended the program to exempt J-1 doctors who received a Conrad 30 waiver from the annual H-1B numerical limitation (otherwise known as the “H-1B cap”), as these doctors must complete their required three-year period of service as H-1B nonimmigrants.
This current sunset date of Sept. 30, 2009, applies to the date the medical doctor originally entered theUnited States in J-1 status or received a change of status to J-1, to complete a residency program in the United States. Doctors who acquired J-1 status before Sept. 30, 2009, may pursue a waiver of the two year foreign residence requirement under the Conrad State 30 program, if they meet all the eligibility requirements.
“Doctor Shortage Proves Obstacle to Obama Goals: Primary Care Lacking”
The New York Times, April 27, 2009
As primary care physicians serve as the most essential source of healthcare in America, having a shortage has been the source of much distress for the Obama administration, and has further stimulated the need to advance a solution. Difficult as may be, there have thus far been several proposals in how to deal with this. One such proposal suggests boosting Medicare payments to general practitioners, coming at the expense of the higher-paid specialists who are not so fond of this suggestion. A second proposal has been to increase the number of doctors, which has its own disadvantage of simmering costs. Anotherproposal simply suggests an increase the enrollment in medical schools and residency programs, simultaneously encouraging an increase in nurse practitioners and physician assistants. Finally, an expansion of the National Health Service Corps—an organization that extends healthcare to rural, underdeveloped areas—was suggested as well. With diminishing income rates, primary care physicians are seeking to specialize in an effort to make ends meet, rendering a primary care doctor-to-population ratio that is so disproportionate it is worrisome. As the Obama administration is dispensing substantial amounts of money into community healthcare centers, a consensus as to how to cope with the prevalent need for primary care physicians is yet to be reached.
This report is evidence of the need for Senator Conrad’s recent proposed legislation expanding the Conrad 30 program.
Legislation, S.628, was proposed on March 18, 2009 to provide incentives to physicians to practice in rural and medically underserved communities.
This bill will make the J-1 visa waiver program permanent, and in doing so, amend the provisions that were previously imposed on H-1B practitioners, ultimately providing an expansion in the number of foreign physicians accepted each year to a specific state (i.e. make it more than 30). Many states such as California and Texas use their 30 slots, demonstrating the need for physicians in underserved areas.
It has as four main sections. The first simply acknowledges that this initiative may also be referred to as “Conrad State 30 Improvement Act”. Section two eliminates the Sunset provision of the Conrad state 30 program by removing the section that reads “and before September 30, 2009” in the 1994 Immigration and Nationality Technical Corrections Act.
Section three proposes incentives for physicians to practice in medically underserved communities, by amending specific subsections of the original act, and Section four of the bill attempts to retain physicians in medically underserved communities.
Many physicians are contacting us to ascertain whether states have availability for their Conrad 30 programs. Although some popular J1 Waiver Conrad 30 programs are no longer accepting applications including Texas and New York, many states are accepting applications for their J1 waiver programs. Pennsylvania is currently accepting Conrad 30 J1 Waiver applications; however, Pennsylvania may no longer have availability for their Conrad 30 program within the next two months. On December 14, 2008 California had availability for 10 more Conrad 30 slots. California has revised its Specialist policy and may accept applications on March 1, 2009 if the aforementioned primary care slots are not utilized. Many states throughout the Midwest, Northeast and Northwest have availability for their J1 Waiver Conrad 30 Programs. For instance, Maine has received one application and Washington has received 20 applications. If you have questions about a particular state’s Conrad 30 J1 Waiver Program call our office at 415-986-6186.
The Department of State has published the Visa Bulletin for December 2008. Employment Based 1st preference (EB1) is current for all countries. Furthermore, Employment Based 2nd Preference (EB2) is also current for all countries except India and China. The EB2 priority date for Indians is June 01, 2003 and June 01, 2004 for Chinese foreign nationals.
Why are the above priority dates important to you?
Once the I-140 petition is approved and the priority date becomes current, you may apply for a green card either in the United States (an adjustment of status application) or abroad (through consular processing). To learn more about the PERM labor certification and green card process visit our PERM article for doctors and scientists at http://j1visawaiver.net/work-visas-and-green-cards/perm-labor-certification-for-doctors/.
There is still time to obtain a J-1 waiver. Many states such as California that normally receive a large number of J-1 waiver applications are far from reaching their quota: California has only received eight applications, Washington has received 4 applications, but Texas does not have any availability for their Conrad 30 Program. (It is interesting to note that this year, Texas, one of the most popular Conrad 30 programs, did not fill all of their Conrad 30 slots on the first day, as they normally do).
There has been a significant decline in J-1 Waiver Conrad 30 applications this year due to the overall decline in the J-1 visa program. In 2007 approximately 850 J-1 waiver applications were granted. In contrast, in 2006 approximately 1000 J-1 waiver applications were granted. The Wall Street Journal reports that “the number of foreign physicians with J-1 visas has decreased from 11,000 in 1995-1996 to 6,000 in 2005-2006″ (Jordan, Wall Street Journal, 2/16). The popularity of the H-1B visa as an alterniative to the J-1 visa, and without the two year home residency requirement, is one of primary reasons that the popularity of the J-1 visa is in its decline.
However, the decline in J-1 waiver applications is a boon to physicians who have not applied for their J-1 waiver this year.
The New York Times reports that already interested doctors and medical professionals were further drawn to a job fair in New York in order to work in medically underserved areas and consequently waive their J-1 visa two year home residency requirement. Thus, most of the doctors who attended the job fair had originally come to the United States on a J-1 visa. As some are bound to the terms of the J-1 “exchange visa” that necessitates them to return to the country they immigrated from for a period of two years, these doctors are interested in obtaining a J-1 Conrad Waiver that will safeguard their position to continue practicing in the United States. The aforementioned job fair, then, became somewhat geared toward matching suitable doctors to specific hospitals by the Greater New York Hospital Association. Nevertheless, a paramount concern of these individuals remained acquiring a visa. It also became interesting to note that these individuals all came from different parts of the world and would be subject to different unfavorable circumstances had they become forced to return back to the country they came from.
