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MDgreencard.com Newsletter Volume IV, Number I March 20, 2005 This newsletter, edited by Theodore Sherman, Esq., and published strictly in an electronic format, contains information pertinent to immigration issues for physicians and scientists who desire to reside in the U.S. on a temporary or permanent basis. Readers who wish to obtain more information on topics are encouraged to forward your queries to us by completing the online consultation form on our website. We will respond to your particular queries as soon as possible. Also, please don’t hesitate to contact the author directly if you wish, as I do attempt to answer all emails personally within just a few days of my receipt. Our new website's: Please visit www.MDvisaforum.com, as it is now online. Our newest sites, www.J1waiver.com and www.PERMgreencard.com should be online in the coming weeks. Table
of Contents 1.1 Green Card processing under PERM becomes a reality! *** Beginning on March 28, 2005 , the process for obtaining certification from the U.S. Department of Labor (an integral part of Green Card processing through employment based avenues) will be changed dramatically, to the benefit of intending immigrants. The new process, called PERM (Program for Electronic Review Management) is the most significant change to Green Card processing in the United States in more than 35 years. Should PERM work according to plan, it will reduce the time it takes to obtain certification from the US Dept. of Labor to approximately 60 days (from the 2-4 year processing time in the U.S. States). [*** Once labor certification has been obtained through PERM , the individual must still apply for an immigrant visa (through adjustment of status or consular processing). Adjustment of Status processing in the U.S. currently requires 22-28 months, while Consular processing averages 9-18 months.] PERM will have a significant positive impact for physicians for the following reasons:
There are additional benefits to physicians under the PERM process – too many to list here. PERM requirements. The PERM program does indeed require that the prospective employer take a number of pre-filing advertising/recruiting steps: including the placement of recruiting advertisements in the newspaper (two Sunday ads); the placement of a job order with the State Workforce Development Agency; as well as few other recruitment steps. It is suggested that the employer initiate these recruitment steps approximately a few (2-4) months prior to a PERM filing. Since the PERM process is essentially an employer-good-faith process, once the recruiting has been done and a U.S. citizen applicant qualified for the job has not been located, an application for PERM can immediately be submitted, and then be quickly approved by the U.S. Dept. of Labor. Please contact us for specific PERM requirements. 1.2 H-1B visa processing - update of filing fees and exemptions The Current Scoop: The H1B visa cap has been met for the year (and new H1B visas for non-exempt employers are not available until October 1, 2005 (applications may be submitted on or after April 1, 2005 for an October 1, 2005 start date. Filing fees have been increased as follows:
The Good News: The great majority of U.S. hospitals are EXEMPT from the H1B visa cap (since they are non-profit and affiliated with US medical schools/universities) – these hospitals are also EXEMPT from the new training fee. Therefore, the fee increase to medical residents and fellows will be $500 (since nearly all training programs pay for filing fees, the increase in the filing fees will not affect most new residents/fellows). The GAP problem: Our office often encounters physicians who are completing their training on H1B visa in an exempt institution and who would like to begin employment in a private practice immediately following completion of training on July 1. Since the cap has been reached, obtaining an H1B visa for a for-profit (and therefore non-exempt) employer is not available for a start date prior to October 1, 2005 . Hence, the physician may apply for (and obtain) an H1B visa for a start date of October 1, 2005 based on an application for H1B visa on or after April 1, 2005 . Yet, there would then be a GAP from July 1, 2005 to October 1, 2005 . GAPS are discouraged. Suggestions: Consider obtaining an H1B visa extension with your present exempt employer for a few month period (perhaps as a locum, hospitalist, etc. to cover this gap); or consider initiating a PERM application immediately and apply for Green Card / work authorization to avoid the GAP. Call my office to discuss your situation further. Contact us with questions in this regard, as legal counseling with this issue is indeed very important at this time. 1.3 J1 (Hardship) Waiver Update – Still more approvals Indeed, we are still having excellent success with hardship waiver applications –- in fact, this waiver option has become the waiver of choice for many physicians. The last waiver approval we obtained took just 7 weeks for both US State Dept. approval and approval by the US Immigration Service. A few of our latest hardship waiver approvals involved the following situations:
Indeed, I continue to highly recommend that hardship waivers be considered as a possible route to J1 waiver. Note, however, that hardship waivers are granted on a discretionary basis by the US Immigration Service/Dept. of State – hence, there will always be some uncertainty with these types of waiver applications. *** Multiple J1 Waiver Applications – kindly note that the US State Dept. DOES NOT PERMIT an individual to have more than one J1 Waiver Application pending at a given time. *** Advice – When presented with a Conrad 30 opportunity as well as a good case for Hardship Waiver, I STILL NEARLY ALWAYS recommend the Conrad 30 opportunity, as this indeed is the conservative approach. 1.4 O1 Visas – easier to obtain? We are now noticing an easing of the difficulty in securing O1 visa approval for physicians and scientists in certain circumstances. For physicians with employment opportunities in the Southern and/or Western U.S. (Texas or California Service Center processing), O1s are most readily available for qualified physicians. For physicians with employment opportunities in the Mid-western U.S. (Nebraska Service Center processing), O1s are still difficult to obtain, but somewhat more readily available. For physicians with employment opportunities in the Eastern U.S. (Vermont Service Center processing), O1s are the most difficult to obtain (but a bit more readily available in certain circumstances. Please contact us for more information. Below please find some interesting statistics concerning US immigration, courtesy of the US Census Bureau and US Immigration Service.
Source: Census 2000 
Source: Census 2000 
Source: Census 2000 
We appreciate your comments. Please direct your emails to us at info@MDgreencard.com Please continue to visit our website at www.MDgreencard.com for further information and for periodic updates.
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