MEDICAL SPECIALISTS MAY QUALIFY FOR PHYSICIAN NATIONAL INTEREST WAIVER

In addition to primary care physicians, medical specialists who agree to practice in any area designated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as having a shortage of health care professionals may be eligible for the physician national interest waiver under section 203(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

This decision, reached by the Administrative Appeals Office of USCIS, and adopted agency wide by USCIS on March 9, 2016, establishes new guidelines for who is eligible for the physician national interest waiver.

“Visas shall be made available . . . to qualified immigrants who are members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent or who because of their exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business, will substantially benefit prospectively the national economy, cultural or educational interests, or welfare of the United States, and whose services in the sciences, arts, professions, or business are sought by an employer in the United States.” Section 203(b), Immigration and Nationality Act.

Under this general rule, immigrants with advanced degrees could qualify for a visa, if they have a job offer. Previously, there was an exception to the job offer requirement available to primary care physicians who were working in areas where their skills and services were in need:

Physicians working in shortage areas or veteran facilities.

(I) In general. The Attorney General shall grant a national interest waiver pursuant to clause (i) on behalf of any alien physician with respect to whom a petition for preference classification has been filed under subparagraph (A) if –

(aa) the alien physician agrees to work full time as a physician in an area or areas designated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as having a shortage of health care professionals or at a health care facility under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; and

(bb) a Federal agency or a department of public health in any State has previously determined that the alien physician’s work in such an area or at such facility was in the public interest.

USCIS, however, has now expanded this national interest waiver to include not just primary care physicians, but to medical specialists, as well. This means that the national interest waiver is now available for oncologists, pediatricians, and other medical specialists who can serve areas in which there is a shortage of doctors.

HOW WE CAN HELP

This decision, while issued as guidance to all USCIS personnel, is still fresh. If you are a physician, or medical specialist, and are interested in obtaining a national interest waiver, you may still encounter a USCIS officer who is unfamiliar with the expanded law. We can help by thoroughly and clearly explicating the law to USCIS, ensuring that you get the full benefit of the law.

Read Full Memo Matter_of_H-V-P-_Adopted_Decision_2016-01.pdf_-_Adobe_Acrobat