Some J-1 exchange visitors are subject to the U.S. Department of State Two-Year Foreign Residence Requirement INA 212(e) that requires them to return to their home country for two years at the end of their J-1 program. If you belong to one of the following categories, you are most likely subject to this requirement at the end of your J-1 program:

• You come from a country on the U.S. Department of State “skills list”
• You received funding from your home government or from the U.S. government (this can include grants your PI has secured such as NIH, NSF used to pay your salary)
• You entered the US for medical training sponsored by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG)
• You are/were the J-2 dependent of an Exchange Visitor who is/was subject to the requirement

If you have ever been subject to the requirement in the past, and have neither obtained a waiver nor fulfilled it by spending two years in your country, it still holds - even if a more current Form DS-2019 reflects no basis for such a requirement.

The Two-Year Foreign Residence Requirement will not prevent you from reentering the U.S. with an F-1 student, B-1/B-2 (tourist) or J-1 student visa (or some other categories) in the future, but it will prevent you from getting H-1B and L-1 non-immigrant employment or Permanent Residence status unless the 2 year requirement is either fulfilled or waived. It will also prevent you from changing status inside the United States from J to any other nonimmigrant classification except A or G. .

• You can fulfill the requirement by residing in your home country or country of last permanent residence for an aggregate of two years after your J-1 Program completes and you depart the US. The Two Years do not need to be consecutive...you can add up time in increments if you do not wish to reside in your home country/last country of permanent residence for two years in a row.
• You can apply for a Waiver of the Two Year Home Residency Requirement

On Monday, December 9, 2024, the US Department of State published Public Notice 12555 in the Federal Register, updating the Exchange Visitor Skills List. The new Skills List became effective on December 9, 2024 and is retroactive.

• J-1 and J-2 nonimmigrant exchange visitors who were subject to the Two-Year Home Country Physical Presence requirement (INA 212e) at the time of their admission to the US or acquisition of J status based on designations in a previously published Skills List, will no longer be subject to this requirement if their country of citizenship or legal permanent residence is not designated in this revised list, regardless of the notation on their US entry visa in the passport or Forms DS-2019.
• Countries removed from the Skills List include the People’s Republic of China, India, Brazil, Turkey, and South Korea, among others. Please review the Public Notice to determine if your country, has been removed.

• This notice does not remove application of the Two-year Physical Presence requirement to J-1s and J-2s whose subjectivity is based on criteria other than the Skills List (such as funding source or type of exchange program). 

Government financing

An exchange visitor is subject to 212(e) if participation in the program for which they came to the US was financed in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, by an agency of the US Government or by the government of the country of their nationality or of their last legal permanent residence.

Examples of Direct Government Funding:

• Fulbright Scholarships
• Scholarships from your home government

Examples of Indirect Government Funding:

• Your Temple salary is funded in part or completely by a US Government grant that your PI has received such as NIH, NSF, DOD
• Your salary is paid by your home institution which receives some or all its funding from your home government

Review the Eligibility Information webpage. If you are still unsure if you are subject, you can request that the Department of State, Waiver Review Division conducts an Advisory Opinion. An Advisory Opinion is a review of your exchange visitor program documents to determine if you are subject to this requirement. You must have an Advisory Opinion to change your immigration status, and the Advisory Opinion process can take multiple months to receive, so please plan accordingly. 

* If you are applying for an Advisory Opinion, please be sure to mail the following documents the US Department of State:

• Legible copies of every/all Form DS-2019/IAP-66 ever issued to you;
• Legible copies of your passport
• Legible copies of all J Exchange Visitor visa stamp(s) in your passport
• A self-addressed, stamped envelope.
• If you are receiving Temple funding, include a letter signed by your PI/Faculty Mentor that answers the following questions:
  • What was the name of the pertinent grant
  • What are the names of the PI and Co-PIs?
  • Who applied for the grant?
  • Which institution provided the grant?
  • Was the job opportunity open to any successful candidate?
  • Were you specifically named in the grant application?
  • Was grant money from which you were paid earmarked for specifically for you in connection with your participation in Temple's J-1 Program?

Read about the J Waiver Application Process here.