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Many foreign scholars have questions about the home-stay requirement whether or not there is a possibility to have the J1-visa waived after being offered a job in the US.
The J1 home-stay requirement is when certain foreign exchange students have the obligation to have a physical presence in their origin country for two years. This physical presence is required at the end of the visitor exchange program. If there is no possibility of you returning to your origin country for the two year condition, you must retrieve a waiver that is authorized by the Department of Homeland Security previous to changing status in the United States or previous to being issued a visa in certain divisions for travel to the United States.
The web page from the Department of State is the first place in which this process should begin. Before filing the waiver for the J1 visa USA it is crucial to gather any paperwork that may be necessary for the process. If you are filing under the no objection path it is required for you to apply for a letter to your embassy. The letter to your embassy must be to your home country, which has to state that they are fine with waiving this requirement. Even though you file with your embassy in your home country, this does not assure that the application that is filed for it to be waived will be approved. Additional to the letter to the embassy, you must create a statement of reason for the Department of State. The Department of State is where the application will be evaluated.
According to the website, the process to have the J1 visa waiver USA is approximately 6-8 weeks. However, there have been cases where the process has taken up to 6 months. This time frame does not include the time that it takes you to prepare all the documents prior to filing. When planning to file this waiver, it is important to keep in mind that the waiver must be approved by the Department of State. When filing through the Department of State is it mandatory for them to require a background check. Prior to applying for your new work visa, this process must be completed.
Although there may be controversy on needing a lawyer for this process, it is important to have a lawyer to walk you through every step of the process and be assured that you aren’t filing incorrectly. A lawyer will be familiar with the process and can make this process run smoother for you.