How to Apply for a J1 Visa Waiver

Many J1 visa holders who finish an exchange program often find themselves in a sticky situation. You might want to change your status or apply for another visa, but you are subject to the two-year home-country physical presence requirement.

Not everyone is able to fulfill this requirement and this could easily cause a lot of stress if you want to stay in the U.S. Fortunately, you can apply for a waiver of this requirement. We provide more information on the J1 visa waiver application below.

Read on to learn more, or check out our video How to Apply for a J1 Visa Waiver!

What is a J1 Visa Waiver?

The J1 visa is a non-immigrant visa that is granted for individuals who want to participate in an exchange visitor program in the U.S. Some applicants will be subject to the two-year home-country physical presence requirement. This requirement requires you to go back home for at least two years after your exchange visitor program has completed.

If this is not possible and you want to apply for another visa or change status in the U.S., you have to apply for a J1 visa waiver. With this application, you apply to the U.S. Department of State Waiver Review Division to recommend that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) grant a waiver.

A J1 visa waiver is granted under one of the following statutory bases:

• No Objection Statement
• Request by an Interested U.S. Federal Government Agency
• Persecution (Fear of Persecution)
• Exceptional Hardship to a U.S. Citizen (or lawful permanent resident) spouse or child
• Request by a Designated State Public Health Department or its Equivalent (Conrad State 30 Program).

When you apply, you have to choose which statutory basis fits your specific situation. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee your waiver application will be approved.

How to Apply for a J1 Visa Waiver

If you want to apply for a J1 visa waiver, you can follow the simple steps below.

Apply Online

To apply, you can complete the required Form DS-3035 online. It is important that you complete the version available online, as no other version of the form will be accepted. If you send the wrong version, it will be sent back to you without your processing fee. The processing fee is non-refundable.

Even though this form is completed online, it still has to be printed and submitted by mail. When downloading and printing the form, your information will download into a barcode. When printing your DS-3035, make sure the barcode is printed properly. Remember, it must only be printed in black and white ink. No color ink is allowed!

Apply by Mail

To complete your application, you should mail the following documents to one of the addresses below:

• Your completed Form DS-3035 (with the barcode you printed)
• Copies of all Form DS-2019/IAP 566 ever issued to you (make sure they are legible copies)
• Two self-addressed, stamped legal-size envelopes
• Your application fee of $120

If you want to send your application by physical mail, you can send it to the following address:

Department of State J-1 Waiver
P.O. Box 979037
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000

If you want to make sure of a courier service, send your application to the following address:

Department of State J-1 Waiver
P.O. Box 979037
1005 Convention Plaza
St. Louis, MO 63101-1200

It is very important that you submit your application fee with your Form DS-3035, otherwise, your application will not be processed.

Necessary Documents

Once you’ve submitted your main application, your supporting documents have to be submitted. These documents are submitted by third-party organizations on your behalf.

The supporting documents that need to be submitted and the third party who will submit it on your behalf will depend on the legal basis on which you are requesting your waiver:

• No objection statement – your home country’s government
• Request by an Interested U.S. Federal Government Agency – the interested U.S. federal government agency
• Persecution – USCIS
• Exceptional Hardship to a U.S. Citizen (or lawful permanent resident) spouse or child – USCIS
• Request by a Designated State Public Health Department or its Equivalent (Conrad State 30 Program) – Designated State Public Health Department or its Equivalent

Your supporting documents must be sent to the Waiver Review Division at:

Waiver Review Division
U.S. Department of State
CA/VO/DO/W
SA-17, Floor 11
Washington, DC 20522-1711

It is your responsibility to ensure that the correct organization sends the supporting documents to the Waiver Review Division. The Waiver Review Division will not follow up on any supporting documents that are missing from an application.

To follow up and check whether the applicable organization submitted the required documents, you can check your J1 visa waiver status.

You should wait about a month after submission of your application and supporting documents before you check your J1 visa waiver status.

How to Check Your Application Status

You can check your J1 visa waiver status online at this link.

Remember to allow about a month since submitting your complete application before you check your status.

To check your J1 visa waiver status, simply click on “Check the status” and enter your case number. You will now be able to see which documents have been received and which are still outstanding.

Hopefully, the system will indicate your DS-3035 online application, fee and supporting documents have been received. If any third party supporting documents are outstanding, it is your responsibility to follow this up with the applicant organization. The Waiver Review Division will not follow up on this.

If any required information is missing or additional information is needed, this will also be indicated on the system.

What to Do if More Information is Needed

If your application requires additional information or documentation, you will be contacted by the Waiver Review Division. They will use the contact information you provided on your Form DS-3035.

Any further documentation you need to submit can be sent to the below address:

Waiver Review Division
U.S. Department of State
CA/VO/DO/W
SA-17, Floor 11
Washington, DC 20522-1711

You can also use this address if you’ve already submitted your J1 visa waiver application, but you have new relevant information which might affect your eligibility for the waiver.

It is important to only use this address if additional documents or information is required and not when first submitting your application and fee.

When submitting additional documents, write your case number on all documents you send after your initial application has submitted. Also, write it on the outside of the envelope to make sure they process it correctly with your application.

Processing Times

The time it will take to process your J1 visa waiver application will depend on the basis on which you are applying for a waiver. Below we provide estimates of the time it will take the Waiver Review Department to process your J1 visa waiver application.

Estimates processing times and legal bases:

• No objection statement – 6 to 8 weeks
• Interested U.S. Federal Government Agency – 4 to 8 weeks
• Persecution – 3 to 4 months
• Exceptional Hardship – 3 to 4 months
• State Public Health Department (Conrad State 30 Program) – 4 to 6 weeks
• Advisory Opinion – 4 to 6 weeks

J1 Waiver Final Determination

Once the Waiver Review Division has processed your J1 visa waiver application, it will forward their recommendation to the USCIS. They will also send you a copy of this recommendation. Once the Waiver Review Division has sent their recommendation, you will need to follow up with the USCIS for your J1 visa review status.

It is up to the USCIS to make a final determination on whether your J1 visa waiver application will be approved or not. Once this decision has been made, the USCIS will notify you at the address provided in your application.

J1 Waiver Approval

Remember the USCIS is the final J1 visa waiver authority. This means you do not have a waiver of the physical presence requirement until the USCIS informs you that they approved your J1 visa waiver application.

Read More

• J1 to Green Card: How to Become a Permanent Resident in the U.S.
• Guide to Teacher Visas in the USA
• J1 to H1B and J1 to F1: How to Change Your J1 Visa Status
• Can a J1 Visa Be Extended?
• Guide to Jobs for Filipino Teachers in the USA

Conclusion

There’s no need to stress about the two-year home-country physical presence requirement if you want to stay in the U.S. after completing your exchange program on a J1 visa. If necessary, apply for the J1 visa waiver and keep tracking your J1 visa waiver status. You might get this obstacle solved without having to blink another eye.

Frank Gogol

I’m a firm believer that information is the key to financial freedom. On the Stilt Blog, I write about the complex topics — like finance, immigration, and technology — to help immigrants make the most of their lives in the U.S. Our content and brand have been featured in Forbes, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and more.

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