J-1 exchange visitor: research scholars, trainees and interns

Eligibility requirements

• Research scholar: a person entering primarily to conduct research, observe or consult in connection with research projects at a research institution, corporate research facility, museum, library, university or similar institution. The appointment must be temporary even if the post itself is permanent. The person must not have participated in a J programme in the preceding twelve months (with limited exceptions) and must not have completed a research scholar or professor programme in the preceding 24 months.
• Trainee: a person with a degree or professional certificate from a foreign post-secondary institution and at least one year of related work experience acquired outside the United States, or five years of related experience, entering for structured training in an occupational field.
• Intern: a person currently enrolled full-time at a foreign post-secondary institution in the relevant field, or who graduated from one no more than twelve months before the programme begins.
• Trainees and interns require a fully signed Training/Internship Placement Plan (Form DS-7002) before the DS-2019 is issued. The placement may not be unskilled or casual labour, may not involve more than 20 per cent clerical work and may not displace US workers or fill a labour need.
• All participants must have sufficient English to function in the programme, must hold the insurance the regulations require and must have the financial means the sponsor specifies.
• The sponsor must have accepted the participant and the activity must take place at the sites recorded in SEVIS. The sponsor remains responsible for monitoring the programme throughout.

Legal framework

Build the evidence

Prepare records that substantiate the relevant criteria. The final checklist depends on the applicant, route and filing authority.

• Form DS-2019 issued by the designated sponsor, the SEVIS fee receipt and, for the visa application, Form DS-160 and evidence of the programme's funding.
• For research scholars: the host institution's appointment letter describing the research, the supervisor, the duration and any teaching or lecturing permitted; evidence of the applicant's qualifications and publications.
• For trainees and interns: the signed DS-7002 placement plan with phases, methodology and supervision, the host organisation's details, and evidence of the applicant's degree, enrolment or qualifying experience.
• Evidence of insurance meeting 22 CFR 62.14 and of financial support for the participant and any J-2 dependants.
• Evidence relevant to INA 212(e): the funding sources recorded on the DS-2019, the person's country of nationality and last legal permanent residence, and the current Exchange Visitor Skills List.
• For a later waiver application: Form DS-3035, the statement of reason, and the supporting documents the chosen basis requires (for example a No Objection Statement from the home government or an interested US federal agency's request).

How to apply

1. 01

   Identify the category and the sponsor

   Choose between research scholar, trainee and intern on the facts, not on convenience. Many universities and research institutions are their own designated sponsors; a corporate host usually works through a third-party sponsor. Confirm the twelve-month and 24-month bars for repeat research scholars.

2. 02

   Obtain the DS-2019

   The sponsor screens the participant, verifies English and insurance, approves the DS-7002 where required and issues the DS-2019 through SEVIS. The DS-2019 records the funding sources that determine whether INA 212(e) applies.

3. 03

   Apply for the visa and enter

   Pay the SEVIS fee, complete Form DS-160 and attend the consular interview. The consular officer notes on the visa whether the two-year rule applies; that annotation is preliminary and can be reviewed later by the Department's Waiver Review Division.

4. 04

   Run the programme as recorded

   Research and training must take place at the sites in SEVIS under the supervision described. Paid lectures or consultations by a research scholar require the responsible officer's written approval. Any change of host, site or objective goes through the sponsor.

5. 05

   Plan the end of the programme early

   A research scholar who completes the five years, or a trainee or intern who finishes, becomes subject to the repeat-participation bars. If a move to H-1B, L-1 or permanent residence is contemplated and INA 212(e) applies, start the waiver process well before the programme ends; the 30-day grace period after completion does not permit work.

After approval & family planning

• A spouse and unmarried children under 21 hold J-2 status and may study. A J-2 spouse or child may apply to USCIS for an employment authorisation document; it will not be granted where the income is needed to support the J-1 principal. A J-2 is subject to INA 212(e) if the J-1 is.
• The sponsor, not the host, is the compliance counterpart. Keep the DS-2019 current, report address changes, maintain insurance and confirm any extension within the category maximum through the sponsor before the end date.
• If INA 212(e) applies, the person may not change status in the United States to H or L, may not receive an H, L or K visa and may not adjust to permanent residence or receive an immigrant visa until two years of physical presence in the home country are completed or a waiver is granted. Other visas, including a return as a visitor or a student, remain possible.

What this route builds, and what it opens

WG assesses every route on three returns: the knowledge it adds, the cognitive capability that sustained work abroad develops, and the institutional opportunity it opens or closes. Real work is the mechanism in each case.

Programme context. Where a participant's development plan includes a defined research or training phase in the United States, the research scholar or trainee category may be assessed, with the two-year rule and the repeat-participation bars mapped against the later stages of the plan. Read the framework ↗

Frequently asked questions

Points to consider

• Funding is the critical variable. A grant from a home-government agency or a US federal programme can attach the two-year rule even where the field is not on the Skills List; check the DS-2019 funding boxes before accepting an offer, not after.
• J-1 is a sponsor-led programme. A host institution that treats the participant as an ordinary employee, changes the role without informing the sponsor or allows the DS-2019 to lapse puts the participant's status at risk and may jeopardise the sponsor's designation.