Types of Visas

International Exchange Visitors - J Visas

J-1 visas are for international exchange visitors to the United States. These visitors may be academics, scientists, businesspeople or students. They may be visiting the U.S. under the sponsorship of, or funded by, individual universities, private companies, the U.S. government, or their own government. J-2 visas are for dependents of J-1 visas.

Other programs may be more in line with "study", and thus a student visa is needed.

The organization sponsoring an exchange visitor must be approved for program acceptance by the Department of State. This approval comes in the form of an organization being granted authority to issue a Form DS-2019 to prospective J-1 applicants. This approval only signifies that the sponsoring organization may issue Form DS-2019. The approval does not assure you of a visa, and does not imply U.S. government endorsement of the program or sponsor.

Applicants for Exchange Visitor (J-1) visas should include with their application:

All the documents required for any nonimmigrant visa and you will also need to submit the following:

• All pages of your Form DS-2019 in original (no copies will be accepted). The DS-2019 is issued only by the sponsoring organization in the U.S. Please ensure that all questions are answered; if the form is incomplete, we may not be able to accept your application until the DS-2019 is completed. Please be sure to sign it.
• Transcripts and diplomas from previous institutions attended.
• Financial evidence showing you have sufficient funds to cover your tuition and living expenses during the period of your intended study. If you are funding the exchange visit out of personal funds, original bankbooks and the like are the clearest evidence of adequate funds. If you are being funded by an organization (either in India or America), a letter from that organization explaining what funding will be supplied will help us process your case fastest.

Spouses and/or children may accompany an exchange visitor and qualify for J-2 visas, if dependents are included on the DS-2019. Please check the upper right hand corner of your DS-2019 to be sure your family members are included.

Dependents of J-1 visa applicants - The J-2 visa

The spouse and children of the principal applicant (the person with the F-1 or J-1 visa) may apply for "derivative" visas (F-2 or J-2 visas) to accompany or join the principal applicant in the U.S. "Child" is defined for visa purposes as being under 21 years of age.

Derivative visas are available only to spouses and children; they are not available to the parents, in-laws or adult (21 years old or older) sons and daughters of the principal applicant.

A person who receives a visa as the spouse or child of a temporary worker may not accept employment in the United States. The principal applicant must be able to show adequate financial resources to support his or her family in the United States.

Accompanying family members are strongly encouraged to submit their applications for visas at the same time as the principal applicant.

What are the documents required to apply?

If you are applying for an J-2 visa, please gather together all the documents required for a nonimmigrant visa and you will also need to submit the following:

• Copy of all the pages of the passport of the principal applicant.
• We may request additional documents if the principal has been in the U.S. for some time, including transcripts showing that s/he has maintained full-time student status as an F-1, or information showing that the principal is still engaged in his/her J-1 research.
• Financial documents showing that sufficient funding is available to support both the J-1 principal and his/her dependents. If funding is via a scholarship, graduate assistantship or the like, please supply details including documentation from the source of funding. If self-funded or funded by anyone else in India, original bank passbooks are the clearest evidence of what funds are available.

FOR J-2 APPLICANTS: It is always easiest if dependents apply at the same time as the principal applicant; for example, the J-1 researcher applies for her own J-1 visa and J-2 visas for her spouse and children at the same time. However, it is not mandatory to do so.

Delays in obtaining visas for those persons working or studying in sensitive technologies - Applies to both Students and Exchange Visitors

• Foreign scientists who apply for a nonimmigrant visa to work or study sensitive technologies listed on the Technology Alert List have been subjected to inter-agency security review procedures since 1998. The Technology Alert List outlines technological fields that are considered sensitive and critical to national security, and provides procedures consuls must follow with regard to applicants involved in sensitive fields.
• These review procedures require the names of these applicants to be checked through law enforcement, intelligence and other federal agencies before a visa can be issued to an otherwise qualified applicant.
• Since September 11, 2001, we have been working diligently with other U.S. government agencies in an extensive and ongoing review of visa issuing practices as they relate to the security of our borders and our nation. As a result, more nonimmigrant visa applicants are now subjected to additional inter-agency security reviews.
• We are working with the involved agencies to achieve quicker processing of the applicants subject to these procedures, without compromising national security. Visas continue to be reviewed on a case by case basis

Again, please apply early to avoid any possible delay in obtaining a visa.