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The US is experiencing a severe shortage of foreign
nurses. Limitations imposed by
current US immigration laws make
it difficult for hospitals in
the US to fully draw on the supply
of available foreign nurses.
However, recent changes have
made the process easier and we
expect more reform in the future.
Temporary Nonimmigrant Visas for RN's
1. H-1C
This category is reserved
for RN’s but only hospitals in undeserved
areas that have received
attestation from the Department of Labor
are able to file. There
are currently less
than 15 hospitals in the US that have received
this approval. In addition
there are only 500
visas available.
2. TN
TN visas are available
for professionals
from of Mexico and
Canada. RN ’s qualify
for TN visas.
Canadians require
an offer
of employment from a U.S. employer for a
period not to
exceed
one- year, a licensed in Canada and in
the
state of intended employment, proof of Canadian
citizenship, and a small
fee to enter
the U.S. Mexicans require a more complex
labor
certification.
3. H-1B
This
visa is reserved
for foreign workers
in a specialty
occupation. The
H1-B requires a
bachelors degree.
Most nursing
jobs in the US
do not. The H-1B
status is not available
for RN positions
that require only
a state license
and not a bachelors
degree. However,
where a facility
can justify that
a four-year degree
(or equivalent)
is the minimum
entry requirement
for a job, such
an RN may be granted
an H-1B visa. The
following USCIS
memo explains
the requirement
for
foreign nurses
to obtain an H-1B
and lists various
nursing occupations
that may qualify.
 USCIS Nurses
Memo
Immigrant Visas for
RN ’s
Immigrant visas are difficult to obtain
for a foreign nurse
but they are available. For a RN to be eligible
the RN must have
a RN license and
a diploma from a nursing school in her country;
along with a full
and unrestricted
license to practice professional nursing
in the state of intended employment,
or a certification
that she has passed the examination given
by the Commission on Graduates
of Foreign Nursing
Schools (CGFNS), or evidence that she has
passed the NCLEX- RN licensing
examination but cannot
obtain a license because she lacks a social
security number.
In addition the RN must obtain from the
CGNFS a visa screen certificate which ensures
the RN is proficient in English (unless the
nurse was educated
in an English-speaking country (U.S., Australia, New Zealand,
Ireland, United Kingdom or Canada (all provinces
except
Quebec),
she must obtain a certain score on tests
in written and spoken English administered
by TOEFL (Test
Of English
As A Foreign Language), IELTS (International
English Language Testing
Service) or the TOEIC (Test of English in International Communications.
The MELAB
(Michigan English Language Assessment Battery)
is no longer being offered
to foreign health care workers but may be sent for visa screen
purposes if the RN registered before 11/27/02.).
The
CGNFS will
also ensure that the RN’s
education, training, and licensure abroad are equivalent to that required for
licensure as a nurse in the US. (The visa screen requirement is waived for
temporary immigrants until 7/25/04 when a new regulations requiring the visa
screen for everyone will take effect). The following states require that foreign
nurses pass the CGFNS
examination before taking the state RN licensing
(NCLEX) examination:
Alabama, Alaska,
Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut,
District of Columbia, Florida,
Georgia, Hawaii,
Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Maine,
Maryland, Massachusetts,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska,
New Hampshire,
New Jersey, North
Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania,
Rhode Island, South
Carolina, South Dakota,
Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West
Virginia and Wyoming.
The CGFNS test is
administered
abroad. However the NCLEX
exam is currently
only administered in US, Guam,
American
Samoa, Puerto Rico, the Northern
Mariana Islands
and the US Virgin Islands. The test will
not
be administered
outside the US until after
2005. Therefore,
it is currently
necessary for the RN to enter
the US as
a visitor to take this exam.
While these visas require
a great deal of
work on behalf of
the applicant they
are available without
the requirement of
a labor certification (except
for Mexicans under
TN). Our firm is
capable of steering
the applicant thought the application process
and addressing any
issues that may develope
during the processing
of the visa. Due
to the severe shortage
of RN’s in the
US we expect to see
reforms from Congress
to help alleviate the shortage.
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