H1b Visa for nurses under FY 2010

misswoosie · Apr 19, 2011

you don't apply for an h1b visa yourself. the first step in this process is that a hospital or institution should advertise for a job opening. the job opening should state that the nurse, who by virtue of the specialized nature of the position, must have at least a bachelor's degree in nursing. the hospital or institution should have applied for labor certification through the department of labor, a process that requires substantial proof that the job opening was posted for 180 days and that no us citizen or permanent us resident were found who adequately qualified for the position, hence, the position is being opened to foreign applicants. once, the labor certification is granted, then the hospital or institution can sponsor a foreign national for an h1b. this is a tough hurdle in the setting of a us recession when there are many qualified candidates already living in the us with advanced degrees looking for jobs. in addition, you'll be hard pressed to find a position in senior-care facilities or nursing homes that require a bachelor's degree in nursing.

nursing positions are exempt from labor certification as nursing is classified as a schedule a shortage occupation by the dol

when the department of labor finds that there are insufficient u.s. workers available to meet employers' demand, and so the wages and working conditions of existing us workers will not be adversely affected by immigration, it lists these occupations on schedule a.3 "professional nurses" and "physical therapists" have been listed on schedule a since 1980.4 since the addition of "professional nurses" in 1980, the only other occupation to appear on schedule a is "shortage-area specialist physician," which was taken off the list in 1987.5 twenty-seven years later the department of labor (dol) continues to find that the u.s. does not supply enough professional nurses and physical therapists to meet either u.s. employer or u.s.

http://www.hammondlawfirm.com/retrogression%20article.ctm.pdf

boracay beach · Apr 19, 2011

misswoosie hi,

so in that case can i ask the employer to file for the h1b visa for me? i will have masters degree in gerontology in july and i am a rn. will that falls under special skills nurse?

please give me some idea ...

thank you .

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Apr 19, 2011

nursing positions are exempt from labor certification as nursing is classified as a schedule a shortage occupation by the dol
when the department of labor finds that there are insufficient u.s. workers available to meet employers’ demand, and so the wages and working conditions of existing us workers will not be adversely affected by immigration, it lists these occupations on schedule a.3 “professional nurses” and “physical therapists” have been listed on schedule a since 1980.4 since the addition of “professional nurses” in 1980, the only other occupation to appear on schedule a is “shortage-area specialist physician,” which was taken off the list in 1987.5 twenty-seven years later the department of labor (dol) continues to find that the u.s. does not supply enough professional nurses and physical therapists to meet either u.s. employer or u.s.
http://www.hammondlawfirm.com/retrogression%20article.ctm.pdf

i meant labor condition application or lca not labor certification or lc. the latter only applies to immigrant visa petitions, lca, on the other hand, applies to h1b visa petitions. the us government exempts facilities who sponsor nurses and pt's from filing an lc if the employee is being sponsored for an immigrant visa. but then again, retrogression pretty much took care of that loophole.

your source is from a law firm. i got my information from here: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/statutes/0003.iana.htm

i didn't find any exceptions for nurses or pt's in this document.

misswoosie · Apr 19, 2011

Apologies, but you did say labor certification.

Info in the link I posted is accurate, but as you say, refers to Green Card permanent immigrant applications.

You also very correctly said that retrogression and the whole visa system is completely out of sync with the DOL and this was the point the article was making.

To B beach- you would need to get a job offer that requires a Masters or Bachelors (MINIMUM-but this is more difficult to get past USCIS )and then ask if they would be prepared to sponsor for visa. Not easy these days.

In the US those jobs are usually NP and CNS jobs which would require you to have completed an academic Masters course which is recognised in the US as one that would allow you to sit the NP/CNS examination- I believe.

There are also nurse educator jobs that require Masters degree.

Don't forget that it's also years/type of experience that they'll be looking at, not just your qualification.

You can ask the CGFNS to evaluate your Masters in Gerentology and then you will know where you stand regarding its equivalency to a US Masters.

boracay beach · Apr 19, 2011

misswoosie,

thank you so much for the information, really appreciate it.

have a wonderful day.

boracay beach · Apr 19, 2011

Hi misswosie,

thank you for the information. I am graduating my masters in gerontology from Ohio state should I suppose to evaluate the US degree in CGFNS? I have no idea about it please can you tell me more.

You all have been so helpful thanks a lot. :)

misswoosie · Apr 19, 2011

Hi misswosie,
thank you for the information. I am graduating my masters in gerontology from Ohio state should I suppose to evaluate the US degree in CGFNS? I have no idea about it please can you tell me more.
You all have been so helpful thanks a lot. :)

Sorry- no don't need to as your Masters is from a US university, but not a Masters that leads to NP status- I assume?

I think it would have been better to do a Masters NP course regarding visas/jobs etc.

What made you decide to do Masters in Gerentology?

Not that gerentology isn't very important, I mean rather than a Masters that prepared you to be an NP?

Also- how much nursing experience as RN do you have?

Maybe you'll be able to do some extra modules. NP Masters have the emphasis on A/P, clinical examination, diagnosis, pharmacology and clinical decision making with some research, education, role of the AP nurse etc .

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Apr 19, 2011

Hi misswosie,
thank you for the information. I am graduating my masters in gerontology from Ohio state should I suppose to evaluate the US degree in CGFNS? I have no idea about it please can you tell me more.
You all have been so helpful thanks a lot. :)

Can you sit for the CNS exam with this degree? There are changes in the NP and CNS model with the ANCC certification exams and credentials. The gerontology tracks are being combined with the general adult tracks for certification and credentials, don't know how that's going to affect your limited scope in gerontology.

boracay beach · Apr 19, 2011

to misswoosie juan de la cruz ,

i just received my license from cabon as a rn. i am about to done my gerontology course. well, this is not a np program we do not have to study pharmacology but we do have to study all the physiology and aging related changes and problems. it is more general type. i did worked 2and half years in my country as an rn and came here. i have found some employeers who are willing to file my h1b however i want to make sure i would be accepted before i apply for h1b, further i am thinking to take exam from ancc in geriatric field and be a certified geriatric rn. have not applied for the credential yet ...

my course is general and i think i cannot sit in cns or np exam though...because we have no clinical hours. so do you think its good idea to apply h1b visa as a geriatric nurse ?

sorry for bugging you all but i have no one to ask except you all,

smile...

Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN · Apr 19, 2011

Hi misswosie,
thank you for the information. I am graduating my masters in gerontology from Ohio state should I suppose to evaluate the US degree in CGFNS? I have no idea about it please can you tell me more.
You all have been so helpful thanks a lot. :)

If you have a US Degree it does not need to be evaluated CGFNS. I am assuming you have a Masters in Science in Nursing not a Masters in another field such as social work.

To qualify to sit for the exam.... as a specialist

This is a Computer-Based Test (CBT)

Credential Awarded: RN-BC (Registered Nurse--Board Certified)

Eligibility Criteria All requirements must be completed prior to application for the examination.

Hold a current, active RN license in a state or territory of the United States or the

professional, legally recognized equivalent in another country

Have practiced the equivalent of two years full time as a registered nurse

Have a minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice in gerontological nursing

within the last three years

Have completed 30 hours of continuing education in gerontological nursing

within the last three years.

You will have to find an employer that is looking for that certification and no qualified US nurses. That is a tall order since US Nurses are unemployed

According to USCIS The few RNs who qualify for an H-1B visa typically hold a supervisory or very specialized nurse position the USCIS approved only 38 RNs for H-1B visas in FY 2006, 66 in FY 2007, and 136 in FY 2008.

Seems like a very very small number. Good Luck, and with your MSN you should be able to take a few course for your NP or CNS.

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Apr 19, 2011

I did worked 2and half years in my country as an RN and came here. I have found some employeers who are willing to file my H1B however I want to make sure I would be accepted before I apply for H1B, Further I am thinking to take exam from ANCC in geriatric field and be a certified geriatric RN. Have not applied for the credential yet ...
My course is general and I think I cannot sit in CNS or NP exam though...because we have no clinical hours. So do you think Its good idea to apply H1B visa as a geriatric nurse ?

The ANCC Gerontological Nursing certification is an option. The only problem with that is the fact that eligibility for this certification is open to all nurses including those with ADN so the certification alone does not support a strong case for a BSN-prepared nurse. It also requires clinical experience in a setting where Gerontological Nursing is practiced. You will have to seek a position that requires you to have educational preparation above the ADN level...such as a supervisory or administrative role or even working in a consulting capacity as an example. What kind of jobs were these prospective employers offering you?

misswoosie · Apr 20, 2011

to misswoosie juan de la cruz ,
i just received my license from cabon as a rn. i am about to done my gerontology course. well, this is not a np program we do not have to study pharmacology but we do have to study all the physiology and aging related changes and problems. it is more general type. i did worked 2and half years in my country as an rn and came here. i have found some employeers who are willing to file my h1b however i want to make sure i would be accepted before i apply for h1b, further i am thinking to take exam from ancc in geriatric field and be a certified geriatric rn. have not applied for the credential yet ...my course is general and i think i cannot sit in cns or np exam though...because we have no clinical hours. so do you think its good idea to apply h1b visa as a geriatric nurse ?
sorry for bugging you all but i have no one to ask except you all,
smile...

not bugging us- it's actually an interesting discussion as i have been caught up in retrogression for e-b3 gc since 2007.

trained in the uk with now nearly 30 yrs experience including the stuff you see beside my username.

i don't have a masters but a bsn, plus adult teaching certificate, adv' dip in health research and advanced clinical assessment course which gave me credits at masters level.

in some ways i wish i had done msn in the uk before i came to the us, but regarding being a np or cns (have held both positions in the uk as they aren't "certified " by the uk nursing council) it wouldn't have helped that much as our msns are very research oriented with no clinical hours, although my adavanced clinical assessment course may have helped there.

i obviously have had a job offer since 2007, but cannot take up the position due to retrogression, and at the time h-1bs were going like hot cakes and even the ones reserved for non-profit employers were gone that year.

when they realised how long it was going to take to get me there, they recinded the original job offer of stroke coordinator and offered me a staff nurse position instead,which of course doesn't qualify for h-1b even though there are now plenty available!- soooooooooo frustrating:)

there are plenty of jobs out there (here anyway) that would probably qualify for h-1b (i say that because uscis scrutinise nursing positions with a fine tooth comb to make sure the job really does require a bsn) and i meet the requirements and some, but even though i am already here on h-4 and cost to sponsor would be minimal, employers just don't want to sponsor at the moment. the positions are mostly at coordinator level, either research,clinical or a few in education.

hopefully we will get gc via my husbands position in health research (he has msc in health research and ba in accountancy, but much less experince than me and had no problems getting his work visa as job req'd a masters) within the next year and then i can work.

it is much easier to get h-1b if you have a masters, however in nursing ,jobs that require a msn are mostly np/cns and education.

it was interesting that gingers mom posted re numbers for nursing h-1b from 2005-8 as ,yes they are very low, but numbers were increasing. i would be interested to see the numbers for 2009/10.

at the moment there is a much lower demand for h-1bs, so if you can find a job that meets requirements you should be good.

in april (which is when they start accepting applications each year) the uscis only received around 5000 applications for the bachelors and masters h-1bs. in previous years when the economy was good the h-1b numbers (around 90,000) were all gone in the first week of april!

if you have an employer willing to sponsor, what are the positions they're offering you?

assume they have an immigration attorney and they should know whether or not the job title/edu requiremnts and description meet the criteria.

good luck!

by the way, just wanted to add that if you were in the uk you would have plenty of options for work as gerentology is big , and has been for a long time as it's recognised that elderly people have specialist requirements and need special people to care for them.

we have care of the elderly physicians and acute elderly medical/ortho surgical wards, cns in falls prevention etc etc.

of course i guess in the us elderly care isn't a big money generator, many won't even make to hospital as insurance doesn't cover them and hospitals want to be involved in the "high tech cutting edge" stuff.

in the uk acute stroke falls under acute elderly medicine. personally better as care continues into rehab' without a change in physician, although it's vitually impossible to get a stroke patient onto icu/hdu unless they need surgery and then they become a "neuro" patient!