H-1C newbie

World Immigration

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hi everyone,

i am an RN in Wisconsin using my OPT to work. however, my OPT expires in January of 2008. My hospital is willing to sponsor me for green card but there aren't any available right now, and according to October Visa Bulletin predictions, there probably won't be any available soon. i am running out of time on my OPT and i am running out of options, except to go back to school but i don't exactly have the budget for that right now. there is a hospital in chicago that is willing to sponsor me for H-1C. i know this visa is not exactly recommended because the hospitals aren't in great areas and i will have to sign a 3 year contract, but i don't have very many options right now. has anyone gone throught the same process? any insight is greatly appreciated!

thanks!

Thanks a lot for your reply. I do appreciate all your time. However, I still have some questions. I'm not gonna stay here till August (in fact I'm thinking of leaving next month cause I don't have a place to stay, no job etc. nothing to do), but what I'm saying is that I could contact that recruiter from Ukraine and start the process while I'm in Ukraine or I could sign for the Recruiting Agency and wait for GC.

Could you, please, tell me what is that EB3 and why you're talking about July? I'm sorry for my ignorance but I have no clue. Is that when they become available? In this case, how would I find out if they are available? I don't have any idea. Do I still need an employer to do that for me?

Thanks

You said your visa is going to expire in July. That is why I was always mentioning July. If your permission to stay in US expires and you cannot find another valid visa to be in then you must leave the US. In essence that is your deadline to do anything to find a way to be able to stay in the US.

I have never said anything about it becoming current but only said that you pray that it becomes current by July since that is when your valid visa expires. However, that is something no one knows for sure and might be unlikely as well.

If you are thinking of leaving by next month because of financial considerations then you must do what you must. Some do max out what is allowed for them to legally stay in the US first and hope something turns out then just go home if nothing turns out but that is your decision.

You can go home to your home country and do consular processing and wait out there. There are pros and cons of doing that. Signing for a recruitment agency here in the US is your choice but you already applied directly to hospitals so do not expect that they can make much of a difference. Best bet is to hire a 3rd party lawyer to consult to or at least ask someone who hired one and let him ask his lawyer to be able to properly weigh your options. You must give all your info with him and site your current situation and circumstances to be able to get a unbiased and accurate advice. A lawyer from an agency may be slightly biased.

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Best bet is hire a 3rd party lawyer to consult to be able to properly weigh your options. You must give all your info with him and site your current situation and circumstances to be able to get a unbiased and accurate advice. A lawyer from an agency may be slightly biased.

Could you kindly tell me where can I find such a lawyer? Do you have any contact info and how much do they charge? I live in a very small town (20000) and I don't have a car to go to some bigger city. How can I know that he's gonna tell me the truth and I can trust him? All they want is just to get you hooked so they could get money from you. And can he start the process without a hospital? He needs the hospital as well. Forgive me if I may sound ignorant, cause I am :bowingpur

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The H1-C visa actually requires that you have a license for that state as well as a Visa Screen Certificate in hand before you can even attempt to be sponsored for it. Passing of the NCLEX exam alone and they cannot do a thing for you.

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The H1-C visa actually requires that you have a license for that state as well as a Visa Screen Certificate in hand before you can even attempt to be sponsored for it. Passing of the NCLEX exam alone and they cannot do a thing for you.

NCLEX gives the license and I have Visa Screen, thanks.

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Specializes in NICU.

......You also need the visa screen certification as well to file for the H1C. I recommend consulting an immigration lawyer but you will probably get the same info.

Just to clear things up, VisaScreen is no longer a requirement for H1C, yes it isn't anymore since the congress had extended the H1C last December 2007. It is true that they require visascreen but now not anymore.

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The VSC is actually a requirement for any visa in the US where you will be working in health care. It needs to be submitted when the paperwork is submitted to the US government. Literally, any type of visa where the person is going to be applying for a visa to work in the role of the RN actually requires the VSC in hand before anything is done.

The H1-C visa is only valid now until 2010 and we do not think that it is going to be renewed.

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......You also need the visa screen certification as well to file for the H1C. I recommend consulting an immigration lawyer but you will probably get the same info.

Just to clear things up, VisaScreen is no longer a requirement for H1C, yes it isn't anymore since the congress had extended the H1C last December 2007. It is true that they require visascreen but now not anymore.

I have not read anything about the visa screen certification not being a req't anymore. Anyway, getting a visa screen is supposed to be not a problem whether it is required or not (unless if re-took the June 2006 NLE and failed) and the issue for H1C has always been safety. That would be up to the applicant if they think it's worth it.

Also, just to be precise, it was reauthorized last Dec. 2006 and officially expires exactly on Dec. 20, 2009.

One thing for sure, it is still only limited to 500 visas all-over the US and needs to be licensed for the State where the hospital is located is still required as well and as being licensed in the country where they were educated if educated outside the US.

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NCLEX gives the license and I have Visa Screen, thanks.

NCLEX does not give a license, it is only an exam and one step in the licensing process.

Example: one goes for licensure in CA and does not have a SSN#, then they do not have a license issued. The H1-C requires that they have a license and not just have passed the NCLEX exam. But then there are only a couple of states in the US that have hospitals that will employ with the H1-C and that is a total number of 15 out of the US.

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I have not read anything about the visa screen certification not being a req't anymore. Anyway, getting a visa screen is supposed to be not a problem whether it is required or not (unless if re-took the June 2006 NLE and failed) and the issue for H1C has always been safety. That would be up to the applicant if they think it's worth it.

Also, just to be precise, it was reauthorized last Dec. 2006 and officially expires exactly on Dec. 20, 2009.

One thing for sure, it is still only limited to 500 visas all-over the US and needs to be licensed for the State where the hospital is located is still required as well and as being licensed in the country where they were educated if educated outside the US.

Lawrence is 100% correct on this one. Every single visa in the US that is employer-driven and for the job as an RN, requires the VSC. There are absolutely no exemptions to this ruling. The only time that one does not require the VSC is if they are being petitioned under the K-1 visa, or they already hold a green card or US passport, of a family-based petition as those have nothing to do with being an RN specifically.

We keep hearing so much talk of everyone wanting the H1-C visa, but it is not an unlimited supply nor is it for ever. It expires in less than two years and we are hearing that they do not expect to renew it. There are also only 15 hospitals out of the entire US that can sponsor under it so it does not bode well for anyone if you do not like the facility or they do not like you. The one facility in Maryland that was using this is no longer employing under this visa either. Most are in Texas and in border towns where they also do not have ratio laws and you can have 15 patients on a med-surg unit and be high on the hit list to lose your license. Then you lose your visa and have to leave the US.

Not a good idea in any way, shape, or form.

Those of you that have come here asking for advice on this visa and we have given it, if you choose not to listen, they you will need to deal with what ever happens to you as a result. If you were not concerned, you would have not come here to begin with.

The H1-C is bad news for nurses. Period. End of story.

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Specializes in NICU.
Lawrence is 100% correct on this one. Every single visa in the US that is employer-driven and for the job as an RN, requires the VSC. There are absolutely no exemptions to this ruling. The only time that one does not require the VSC is if they are being petitioned under the K-1 visa, or they already hold a green card or US passport, of a family-based petition as those have nothing to do with being an RN specifically.

We keep hearing so much talk of everyone wanting the H1-C visa, but it is not an unlimited supply nor is it for ever. It expires in less than two years and we are hearing that they do not expect to renew it. There are also only 15 hospitals out of the entire US that can sponsor under it so it does not bode well for anyone if you do not like the facility or they do not like you. The one facility in Maryland that was using this is no longer employing under this visa either. Most are in Texas and in border towns where they also do not have ratio laws and you can have 15 patients on a med-surg unit and be high on the hit list to lose your license. Then you lose your visa and have to leave the US.

Not a good idea in any way, shape, or form.

Those of you that have come here asking for advice on this visa and we have given it, if you choose not to listen, they you will need to deal with what ever happens to you as a result. If you were not concerned, you would have not come here to begin with.

The H1-C is bad news for nurses. Period. End of story.

Not all H1C is bad for nurses, cause if it is then a lot of news will come out about it, true stories that have been said in medias and newspapers, even in the home countries of H1C nurses no news spread about this bad experience with H1C's, bad experiences happen almost to everyone, even to immigrant nurses or those who came here on tourist visa, killings are everywhere even in the safest place on earth and hospitals.

Yes H1C expires on 2009 BUT once you were petitioned and entered the US, for example December 2008 then your visa will expire on December 2011, not 2009. The 3years counting starts the day you enter the US. If you want the H1C make sure you get here before it expires in 2009.

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Well, good luck on the H1C visa.

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The H1-C is bad news for nurses. Period. End of story.

Is it bad because of patient ratio or something else?

Well, I agree, it maybe bad. But what shall I do? I got my PA license, it's valid only 1 year. What if retrogression is not gonna lift - what's gonna happen? It means I lost so many years of my life in vein. I don't know what to do. To go home to Ukraine and wait? I spent so much money on this stuff and all in vein? And to renew they require continued education. Where would I get continued education in Ukraine? And the longer it takes - nobody will want to take me since I will not have a work experience. (working in Ukraine for less than 100 is a waist of life :((((((

Anyways, does anybody know about situation in Canada? Maybe I should go to Canada?

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