I often am asked by employers and nurses, whether they can be sponsored for an H-1B visa.
There are two key concepts:
1. The nurse must hold at least a Bachelors degree in nursing (e.g. BSN); AND
2. The position must normally require a Bachelors degree.
MU has seen the most success in these scenarios:
A. The hospital is offering the nurse a position as a Clinical nurse specialist (CNS), Certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), Certified nurse-midwife (CNM), or a Certified nurse practitioner (APRN-certified) Critical care and the nurse holds the certification;
B. If the nurse will be working in an Administrative position ordinarily associated with a Bachelors degree, such as Charge Nurse or Nurse Manager;
C. If the nurse will be working in one of these specialties: peri-operative, school health, occupational health, rehabilitation nursing, emergency room nursing, critical care, operating room, oncology and pediatrics. And the hospital will attest that these roles are only offered to those with Bachelors degrees. Some magnet hospitals have the BSN as its standards, and these make great destination hospitals for H-1 RNs.
For those interested in healthcare immigration reform, the next few months are critical. If you are interested in liberalizing needed visas for US healthcare workers, now is a good time to meet with your local Congressional delegation, as they are all in their home districts until early September.
Meeting with Congressional representatives is surprisingly easy. All that one needs to do is to place a simple call to the Representative’s office. These phone numbers are readily available on Representatives’ webpage. Everyone who is interested in the US should take the time to contact their Congressional representatives and/or have their friends and family in the US do so.
The message is a simple one:
1. The Department of Labor predicts that the Registered Nurse occupation will grow faster than any other job in the next seven years. (Chart at Table 8 of link).
In the first five days of this H-1B season in April, the USCIS says that it received 42,000 H-1B petitions. The total is now about 45,000. This tiny increase in number is attributed to two factors: (i) the tougher measures being employed by both USCIS and the DOS; and (ii) the current economic condition in the US.
H-1B History:
(Note- Fiscal Year runs from October 1 of the prior year until September 30 of the next year. You may file for an H-1B 6 months in advance of the October 1 start of the fiscal year. In other words, the FY2010 H-1B “season” began on April 1, 2009).
FY 2009: Immediate (First week of April 2008)
FY 2008: Immediate (First week of April 2007)
FY 2007: April 1, 2006 – May 26, 2006
FY 2006: April 1, 2005 – August 12, 2005
FY 2005: April 1, 2004 – October 1, 2004
FY 2004: April 1, 2003 – Feb 17, 2004
FY 2003: Not reached (Cap was 195,000)
FY 2002: Not reached (Cap was 195,000)
FY 2001: Not reached (cap was 195,000)
The other political issue in the spotlight is the resignation of Sen. Sen. Martinez (R-FL) and Sen. Bailey-Hutchinson (R-TX). On one hand these two Senators have been general supporters of immigration reform and so their resignations are unwelcome. Sen. Bailey-Hutchison particularly has been a leader on healthcare visa reform.
On the other hand, since both are Republicans, their influence in Senatorial matters is negligible at this point. Also, since they both are from states with increasing immigration populations, it is expected that any replacements will be unlikely to hinder any CIR legislation. To do so would alienate their constituency.
As readers of my blog surely are aware, retrogression has made it difficult for nurses to enter the US on the immigrant visa because of the long processing times. There is an excellent piece of legislation that, if passed, will create a special immigrant visa category for nurses. The legislation is H.R.2536 – Emergency Nursing Supply Relief Act and is sponsored by Rep. Wexler (D-FL). The bill should allow for nurses to enter the US in about one year’s time once the program is up and running.
The key question is whether the ENSRA will ever be acted upon. Presently, the legislation, like all immigration related legislation that isn’t deemed critical, has an effective hold on it. Congress would like to address all special immigration at once in a massive Comprehensive Immigration Reform bill (CIR). And they would like to do it this fall. Sen. Schumer is taking the lead. The hope is that Sen. Schumer (D-NY) can craft a piece of legislation that will not suffer the same fate as CIR did when it was last offered.
The good news for those in favor of increased nurse visa numbers is that Sen. Schumer has long been a champion of increased nurse visa numbers. In 2005 he led the charge for a special Nurse Exempt visa that was signed into law in May 2005. That bill provided 50,000 visas for nurses and their families. Sen. Schumer is expected to introduce the bill this fall. Because of Sen. Schumer’s past work on liberalized nurse visa numbers, I am optimistic that he will either encompass Rep. Wexler’s ENSRA or use the principles behind the ENSRA in his CIR.
Philippine Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Q. Pimentel Jr urged Ms. Arroyo to press Mr. Obama on nurse immigration issues. GMANews reports that Sen. Pimentel said that if Ms. Arroyo can get “a quota of 20,000 nurses a year, that would be a great economic bonanza for our nurses and their families.”
Ms Arroyo’s other engagements on Friday called for meetings with Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who has repeatedly called for increased nursing and healthcare visa quotas.
Note on the Death of Fmr. Pres. Aquino. As Philippine readers of this Blog surely know, Former President Corazon Aquino died Friday (Saturday in the Philippines). The Musillo Unkenholt firm recognizes the great leadership that Ms. Aquino played in the “people power” movement in the 1980s and would like Philippine readers to know that we will keep the Aquino family and the Philippine people in our thoughts and prayers.
The USCIS’ latest H-1B count update shows that as of July 10, 2009, approximately 44,900 H-1B cap-subject petitions had been filed. In mid-May the USCIS reported that approximately 45,000 H-1B cap-subject petitions had been filed. A recent article in the IT trade journal Computerworld explains that the retreat in H-1B numbers is due to the fact that USCIS is actually denying more cases than they are receiving. Anecdotal reports are that immigration attorneys are seeing many more denials than in years past.
For the healthcare occupations this may be a good sign. Physical and Occupational Therapy positions are being approved without much incident, now that the Masters Degree issue has been resolved. The USCIS seems to be willing to accept the argument that certain nursing positions are eligible for H-1B visas as well, provided that the proffered positions are normally ones for which bachelor degrees are required.
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