Permanent Residence for Nurses - Immigrant Petition
The following requirements are necessary for a foreign nurse to be sponsored under the EB-3 (Green Card) category of the INA:
- A nursing Diploma
- RN license in home country
- Holder of a CGFNS certificate or a full unrestricted license to practice professional nursing in the state of intended employment
Immigration Processing
Immigration processing for foreign nurses involves the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), State Department National Visa Center and the various Consular Offices abroad.
Visa Screen Certificate
Section 343 (Health Care Worker Provision) of the Illegal Immigration Reform & Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 codified at INA Section 212 (a)(5)(C) requires an alien seeking to enter the United States for the purpose of performing labor as a health care worker (other than a physician), to present a certification from the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) or an equivalent independent credentialing organization approved by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) verifying that:
- The alien's education, training, license, and experience meet all the applicable requirements for entry under the employment-based preference category specified in the petition and are comparable with what the U.S. health-care worker for the same type
- The alien is competent in oral and written English as demonstrated by the passage of a nationally recognized exam; and
- The alien passed a licensing examination which is recognized by a majority of the states licensing the profession in which the alien intends to work (if such a license licensing exam exists)
- The designated organizations are required to certify not only regarding the credentials of the alien, but also the alien's English language competence as measured by the approved standardized test.
H-1C Registered Nurses in Medically Underserved Areas
The 1999 Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Act provides opportunity for certain hospitals in medically underserved areas to employ up to 500 nurses nationally in temporary H-1C status. The hospital must obtain an attestation from the U.S. Department of Labor before submitting the H-1C petition to the INS. To qualify to petition for H-1C nurses, the hospital must show that it is located in a federally designated health Professional Shortage Area as of March 30, 1997 and have a minimum of 190 acute care beds, have a minimum percentage of Medicare and Medicaid patients.
H-1B Specialty Occupation Status
Registered nurses are not usually considered professionals for purposes of obtaining H-1B since hospitals and facilities routinely hire nurses who lack a bachelor of science in nursing degree. Hospitals or facilities can still sponsor a nurse under the H-1B statues provided it can show that the position to be filled by the RN requires a four-year college degree and complies with the requirements under 8 USC s 1101(a)(32). Focus must be on the tasks, demands, duties, and actual requirements of position as specified both by petitioner and industry documents. The position must require knowledge, both theoretical and applied, which is almost exclusively obtained through studies in institutions of higher learning.
Hospital's Role As Part Of The Immigration Process
Hospitals that are involved in the hiring of immigrant nurses will play the following role:
- Provide detailed position criteria, including job descriptions.
- Provide detailed company data including financial statements.
- Provide all contractual information including employee contracts
- Provide all documentation provided by IRG in regards to immigration processing, IRG will undertake responsibility of providing all necessary documents to clients.
The hospital will be of dealing with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), State Department National Visa Center and the various Consular Offices, through IRG and its retained attorney.
IRG will provide the client with a monthly update within a client specific candidate tracking system, stating what stage each candidate is at within the immigration process.
Nurse's Role As Part Of The Immigration Process
The nurse will play an active role throughout the immigration process with direct contact to IRG. They will provide the following:
- Resume
- Diploma
- Nurse License
- CGFNS Certificate, if available
- All International Qualification Certifications
- Contact information including telephone, e-mail and mailing address
All tasks required by the nurse will be communicated by IRG on an ongoing basis.
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