1. Starting a J-1 Exchange
Visitor Program
Gloria Law, Immigration Consultant
510.761-8821 glaw55@gmail.com
Lisa Harris, Associate Director of Student Services, Palo
Alto University
650.433-3851 lharris@paloaltou.edu
NAFSA Region XII Conference
October 25, 2012

2. What is the J-1 Visa?
“The purpose of the Exchange Visitor
program is to promote mutual
understanding between the people of the
United States and the people of other
countries by means of educational and
cultural exchanges.”
Mutual Cultural and Exchange Act of 1961

3. J-1 Categories
 Academic Programs  Public Programs
 Student  Alien Physician
 Non-degree  Au Pair
 Degree  Camp Counselor
 Research Scholar  Intern
 Short Term Scholar  Student, (High School)
 Professor  Work/Travel
 Specialist  Teacher
 Trainee  Trainee

4. TOPICS to be covered:
 Why apply for J program (students/scholars)?
 Issues to Consider
 DS-3036 Application Steps
 Pre-requisites
 Selection of Exchange Visitors
 Program Costs/Management
 Health Insurance
 Pre-Arrival and Orientation
 Getting Help

5. Why have J Scholars?
 Assists schools/institutions in inviting
faculty and researchers from abroad
which in turn fosters research
relationships in the current global
economy.
 Allows payment of international faculty
for their research/teaching.
 J-2s (J-1 dependents) are eligible for broad
work permission by application to USCIS.

6. Why have J students?
 To establish exchange agreements with other
institutions abroad which fosters reciprocal
study abroad programs
 Easier development of non-degree programs.
More flexibility in defining full-time status.
 J students can work on campus, and under
academic training (18 months maximum)
 Some foreign governments prefer their
students to visit U.S. in J status

7. What is the two year home residency
requirement?
 Requires J-1 visa holder, at the end of
his/her J program to not return to the
U.S. using an H-1B, L-1 visa or LPR for
two years
 Is applied at the visa officer’s discretion
 If person is funded by his/her government
 If area of study/research is on Skills List
 If marked incorrectly, can be challenged

8. J-1 Time limitations – Duration of Status
 J-1 Scholars
 Five year Maximum
 24 month bar
 Short-term scholars may not extend stay beyond
6 months nor change status inside the U.S.
through USCIS if subject to the 2 year home
residence requirement.
 J-1 Students
 J-1 students get duration of status. However, a J-
1 student may not change his status to J-1
scholar until the student has been out of J status
for at least 12 months.

9. Some Issues to Consider
 J regulations require at least five J visitors per
year. The five visitors can be an aggregate of
visitors in any of your approved categories.
 Reciprocity – How do you plan to meet the
reciprocity requirement? Will your students
attend universities, companies, institutions
from which you accept J-1 visitors?

10. Issues to Consider (cont.)
 The J regulations are very different from F so
in-depth training will be needed.
http://www.nafsa.org/Attend_Events/Training/Wo
rkshops/J-1_Advising_for_Beginners/
 You may need to hire new staff.
 Dept of State requires a J program report be
submitted to them annually.

11. Annual Report
The annual report is prepared by the RO in SEVIS
and includes:
 a statistical summary of Forms DS-2019 usage,
 a numerical count of exchange visitor participation,
 and a written evaluation of the program, including
new initiatives, effectiveness, reciprocity, activities,
cross-cultural programs, etc.

12. GETTING READY TO
APPLY

13. The DS-3036 - Application Process
 Review SEVIS J User Manual
 Prepare pre-requisite wording and
supporting documents
 Complete DS-3036 in SEVIS online
 Print out DS-3036 before submitting

14. The DS-3036 - Application Process
 Mail the relevant documents with the signed
and notarized printed copy of the Form DS-
3036. Include a copy of the Pay.gov
confirmation page showing the payment of the
fee.
 You must mail the materials within 30 calendar
days of submitting the electronic Form DS-
3036. Do not fill in your form online until you
know you have every item ready to mail in.

15. Program applicant prerequisites
To be eligible for J program designation an organization
must demonstrate:
 Ability to comply with EVP/DoS regulations
 Ability to provide full funding and personnel to manage
the J-1 program
 Be ready to start implementing program immediately
upon approval of program.
The DS-3036 Manual has complete listing of pre-requisites

16. Pre-Requisites (cont.)
To complete the sections in SEVIS on Page 3 you will need to prepare
statements regarding the following categories. (SEVIS will only accept
500 characters so you will likely send attached documentation to a
printed version of your application):
The six categories required are:
 Process of selection of Exchange Visitors
 Program Costs/Fees and Deposits/Refunds
 Program Funding and Financial Support
 Health Care Insurance (22 CFR 62.14)
 Pre-arrival and Orientation information (22 CFR 62.10.(b) and 22
CFR 62.10(e)

17. Method for selecting your visitors
J Students
 Regular admission procedures applied to all students
or special criteria for a program you are creating?
 How will you gauge English proficiency? TOEFL?
Other test?
J Scholars
 Invited by Faculty?
 English proficiency can be determined by department
chair. However must be ready to defend your
institution’s reasoning as to why the scholar will be
successful in their academic objective.

18. Program Costs/Management
 Costs of managing program must NOT
be passed onto J visitors.
 Costs must be handled by the institution.
 DS-3036 will ask for a full description of
what costs/fees will be charged to the
participants.

19. Program Management
 There is a need to assign at least an
Responsible Officer (RO) which is like
the PDSO in the F management.
 It is strongly suggested that you also
have an Alternate Responsible Officer
(ARO) as a back up or possibly the day
to day work staff person.

20. Health Care Insurance (22 CFR 62.14)
 Regulations specifically define the minimum
amount of health care the J-1 and all J-2s
must show proof of or purchase.
 School does not necessarily need to pay for
this coverage.
 J-1/J-2 coverage must include Repatriation
and Medical Evacuation which are often not
included in regular health plans. Riders can
be purchased from many insurance
companies.

21. Pre-Arrival and Orientation Information (22 CFR
62.110(b) and (c)
 It will be necessary to create either in paper
format or on-line (preferably both) an
explanation of pre-arrival, orientation and
cross-cultural activities planned for the
Exchange Visitor and his or her immediate
family members on J status.
 See J-1 User Manual for details.

22. Be careful and thorough!
Carefully reading the DS-3036 manual is
critical in getting this process right!

23. Getting Help
Find a school or institution that has a J
program similar in scope, size and goals
and:
 Speak to colleagues about their
programs management.
 Ask if you can review their DS-3036
materials.

24. Getting Help
There are attorneys, particularly those who
are members of NAFSA who can be hired
to help you in the process.
Get a recommendation from a colleague.

25. One other option - IIE
Institute of International Exchange
 Will serve as J sponsor and issue DS-2019s
 You need to provide visitor information
 Each DS-2019 costs $1,500 ($750 for IIE
members)
 Membership fee based on size/type of
institution ($500 - $900)
http://www.iie.org/en/What-We-Do/International-Education-Services/Visa-
Sponsorship

26. QUESTIONS?