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J1 Visa and NIW

Published Jan 16,2016 By Rhodo

Currently, I come to know about National Interest Waiver (NIW) from seniors. Based on my current resume (Currently a postdoc, 10 publications (2 manuscript in preparations), 60 citations, 2 travel grants, 3 grants including one grant as PI and Young Scientist ($38000), 13 conferences, 1 oral presentation, graduate from best university of Japan), I choose to go for it and also collected more than 8 support letters from US, Asia, and Europe. I am planning to file I-140 petition. Since I am in J1 (have 7-8 more months for this fiscal year; J1 will be extended after this term for next year), as far as I know, J1 should be waived in this process to get green card. Since my visa is yearly renewable as my school give me one year J1 every year, I have following questions because I am in puzzle to get J1 waiver.

1. When is the appropriate time to get J1 waive for my case? (Does J1 waiver is require for I-140 petition?).

2. Although I read many testimonials here and time duration is varied from case to case. Could you please tell me from your experience how long does it take to complete the I-140 and I-485 filings? Can I stay at US and work after I-140 approval even my j1 cannot be extended after waiver? Since once J1 is waived, it cannot be extended and I am not sure; my lab will sponsor the H1B. I am in dilemma to get J1 waiver.

Please provide the suggestion and your suggestion is highly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

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Bege
Bege
5 years ago

Hi
I am postdoc fellow currently on J1 visa which will be expiring in the first week of August 2018. I was hoping to get another postdoc or fellowship training that I will simply transfer my J1 status and extend it for another year or two. Unfortunately, I haven’t been successful with any of the postdoc application. I am a worried as time is running short and I need to find an alternative loop in order to keep my status. Can you please help me answer the follinwing concerns I have
1. Can I apply for the i140 before my j1 visa expires (I do have the 2 year home residency requirement and nned to apply for a J1 waiver). Can I apply for the waiver and i140 at the same time
2. Is it possible for my current J1 hosting university to extend my j1 status by 3 or 6 months or it can only be extended by a minimum of one year
3. I did applied for a tenure track position as well (Asst. Prof). Please, whats your advice on the best immigration route to take given my current status if I am accepted for the position
4. Is there a financial burden on organizations sponsoring a H1B visa for a candidate

Many thanks for your help and kudos for the fantastic job you are doing

Tigran Kalaydzhyan
Tigran Kalaydzhyan
5 years ago
Reply to  Bege

Hi Bege,

Let me answer the questions in the same order.

1. Yes, you can apply for I-140 before J1 expires. You can apply for I-140 and J1 waiver at the same time or in any other order, they are independent. You will need the J1 waiver before filing I-485. Please keep in mind that filing for I-140 and/or J1 waiver may prevent you from extending J1 status. Normally, one could stay in the country while I-485 is pending, even if J1 expires. However, in your case, you probably do not have time to obtain J1 waiver before filing I-485.

2. This depends on the policies of your university. Please consult the international office.

3. If you accept the tenure track position, then the best route depends on your circumstances, such as the employer willing to sponsor the EB1B and your eligibility for EB1A or EB2-NIW. It also depends on the common practices for that university.

4. Yes, there is a financial burden on organizations sponsoring H1B. The amount of fees they have to pay vary, depending on the size of the company, type of processing (e.g., premium processing, if available at the time of filing), lawyer fees and so on. It is, usually, in the ballpark of few thousand dollars.

Thank you very much for your kind words. Please feel free to ask any further questions in this thread.

Thu T Nguyen
Thu T Nguyen
4 years ago

Can I apply for I-140 when my DS 2019 expires. During the I-140 is processing, I can return to the home country to fullfill the 2 year rule. After 2 years, can I come back to US on tourist visa with approved I-140 and apply for I-485?

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
4 years ago
Reply to  Thu T Nguyen

If the question is about EB1A or EB2-NIW categories, then I-140 can be filed at any time. However, it is risky to file I-485 while on B1/B2, because filing I-485 less than 90 days after entering U.S. with a nonimmigrant visa can be considered as a misrepresentation of intent. Please keep in mind that the green card can be obtained through the consular processing in the country of residence – one can opt for this option in the I-140 application.

Ruhul Amin
Ruhul Amin
3 years ago

I have filed I-140 petition for EB2-NIW green card. In the meantime, I got postdoc position in the USA. Should I withdraw the pending I-140 petition before applying for J-1?

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
3 years ago
Reply to  Ruhul Amin

Are you already in the U.S.?

Alfredo Iardino
Alfredo Iardino
2 years ago

Hi.

I have applied for a EB2-NIW and a Persecution Waiver at the same time.

Both of my cases have been pending since April and March 2020 respectively and I asked congressional help and they were told that my persecution waiver was in suspended status due to another case which I beleive is referring to the I-140.

My concern is that since time is tuning out, I was able to secure a job that will sponsor Conrad 30 waiver, but it was my understanding that you could submit all these cases together and wouldn’t be a problem.

Questions:

1. Was a mistake to file the Persecution waiver and the I-140 for the EB2-NIW ?

2. Will it affect the submission of my Corad 30 waiver?

3. Should I just withdraw my request for persecution waiver and EB-2 NIW?

This situation have me extremely worried

Alfredo Iardino
Alfredo Iardino
2 years ago

This is for Physician

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
2 years ago

Please consult with a qualified attorney regarding your case.

Ava Shreenivas
Ava Shreenivas
2 years ago

I have filed I-140 petition for EB2-NIW green card. In the meantime, I got postdoc position in the USA. Should I withdraw the pending I-140 petition before applying for J-1? I am currently living in Germany. My priority date in not current (citizen of India).

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
2 years ago
Reply to  Ava Shreenivas

This is a tricky situation and it depends on your priorities in life. Please consult with a qualified attorney regarding this situation. In theory, applying for J1 while I-140 is pending is a conflict of intents. However, in practice, there could be ways to avoid this conflict, especially if your priority date is not current. Also, you can ask your future employer to sponsor H-1B for you. This is a dual intent visa that should not create any conflicts of intent.

Murugesh
Murugesh
8 months ago

I have a quick question regarding my J1 visa. My Visa is ending next year on Jan 24 and as my NIW is approved and EB1A is filled do I’m eligible to extend my JI in the same university and/or transfer my J1 to other universities for the new opening?
I heard that once we file EB1A, J1 could not be extended or transferable to other universities.
Your input is valuable.

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
8 months ago
Reply to  Murugesh

Did you also file Form I-485 (adjustment of status)?

BHANU
BHANU
7 months ago

My J1 to H1B transition and subsequently I-140 approval did not require me to present a J1 waiver certificate. Although I received an RFE for my first H1B petition, but USCIS approved it after showing the explicit mention of 212e not applicable to my case in the exchange visitor list as well as on visa stamps and DS2019. However, I was recommended to get a waiver certificate to avoid a potential decline in H1B stamping in India (my home country) as well as filing the I-485 adjustment of status whenever the date is current. I have already received the No Objection certificates in 2020 which can significantly shorten the time to obtain a waiver. So, my questions are,
1. whether or how my approved H1Bs and I-140 petitions will affect my J1 waiver application?
2. Would I require a J1 waiver for filing the I-485 petition?
Thank you very much.

BlogSupport
BlogSupport
7 months ago
Reply to  BHANU

J1 waiver application is independent of H1B and I-140 petitions.

Regarding J1 waiver for filing I-485, did you get a recommendation from a lawyer? If so, maybe it makes sense to consult with them?

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