J-1 Exchange Visitor Visa

The J-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa for aliens coming to the U.S. to participate in a cultural or educational exchange program. An organization that wishes to sponsor aliens for J-1 visa applications must first apply to the U.S. State Department for approval as an “exchange visitor program.”  There are separate categories of J-1 for alien physicians, au pairs, camp counselors, government visitors, interns, professors and research scholars, and university students among other groups; the specific requirements of the J-1 visa program vary somewhat depending on the applicant’s category. A J-1 visa holder is permitted to remain in the U.S. for the entire length of the exchange program plus an additional thirty days; this additional thirty days is often referred to as the “grace period.”  If the visa holder leaves the United States during the grace period, then he or she will not be allowed to reenter the U.S.on the J-1 visa.

One pitfall of the J-1 visa program is that persons entering the U.S. under certain categories of J-1 visa may be required to remain in their countries of origin for two years after the completion of their J-1 status; during this two year period, such persons are not eligible for any new U.S. visas.  The reasoning behind this requirement is that people who have used J-1 visas to participate in cultural and educational exchange programs in the U.S. need to remain in their home countries in order to share the things they learned in the U.S. with their compatriots.  There are certain circumstances where this two year requirement can be waived.