Retrogression in nursing

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Does anybody know about the quota system for foreign RNs and when does it open??????

I just got my RN license and whenever I apply for the hospital they say there is a retrogation and they can only hire me after the quota opens ...I don't know what' goin on????

Please be aware that it is no longer a guarantee that one may get a green card to remain in the US when they finish their training. Supply of nurses now far outways the number of visas that are available per year.

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Yes, every country not belonging to Philippines, India, China and Mexico are lumped together as one. In the actual Visa Bulletin, it is technically called other chargeability areas. Others just shortened it to either ROW (Rest of the World) or sometimes worldwide.

You will be having the same predicament as the other poster from Nepal.

Actually, all others will since all countries are all retrogressed. No single country under EB3 is current now. If you are graduating in May or June, being on OPT will be the safest route as not being on one will mean that you need to leave US within 60 days after your date of graduation and no one knows when something becomes current for sure. Plus, you also need to have at least passed the NCLEX-RN to file for anything like I mentioned. No use for waiting for an open window if you are not yet qualified to file for it. Better look for OPT now, I've heard that it's tough to get one right now in some parts of the US.

Good luck. :)

Dear Lawrence what are those some parts of US? Just share what you heard, so I would take those states out.

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Dear Lawrence what are those some parts of US? Just share what you heard, so I would take those states out.

Just try and ask for OPT on your own State first but widen your scope to include all others. It would not be wise to make a sweeping statement as things are quite dynamic and the hospitals that previously do not want to hire under OPT may again do so and vice-versa.

Good luck.

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yes, every country not belonging to philippines, india, china and mexico are lumped together as one. in the actual visa bulletin, it is technically called other chargeability areas. others just shortened it to either row (rest of the world) or sometimes worldwide.

you will be having the same predicament as the other poster from nepal.

actually, all others will since all countries are all retrogressed. no single country under eb3 is current now. if you are graduating in may or june, being on opt will be the safest route as not being on one will mean that you need to leave us within 60 days after your date of graduation and no one knows when something becomes current for sure. plus, you also need to have at least passed the nclex-rn to file for anything like i mentioned. no use for waiting for an open window if you are not yet qualified to file for it. better look for opt now, i've heard that it's tough to get one right now in some parts of the us.

good luck. :)

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thank you very much for the answer, truly appreciated. actually, i did get an opt number and it will start in june of this year. hopefully things will work out for those of us who genuinely love this profession and want to work and contribute here.

another thing that caught my eye is one of suzanne's previous post from about a one month ago talking about bsn nursing students (my degree is actually bsn). does that mean that i will have much better chances of, say, applying for h1b in the april of 2009 as my opt will not expire until early june of 2009? thank you both for being such a great support!

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The H1-B is hardly used in the US as most facilities will not sponsor with it and they cannot due to restrictions of the US government and that is the reason why RNs started to get fast-tracked for the green card in the first place.

The H1-B will also be useless to you next year as you cannot remain in the US while it is being processed, and the visa does not start until October, 2009 so you would be out of status.

The majority of the H1-B visas go to those in the IT field, that is just the way that it has been done. One year of experience still makes you a new grad essentially, and most jobs in the US do not require the BSN for entry level so it is also what the job wants, and not just your degree.

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I am on OPT right now with one year's working permit but I was told that the quota is going to open on March and I don't know if it;s true or if I will get in in that limited quota????

Thanks

Are you asking about category being current in order to apply for I-140/I-1485 concurrently? Has your employer applied for I-140 for you yet? At this time you can apply for I-140 only but if your OPT runs out before you are able to apply for I-1485 there is a risk since you would have to leave the country as you need status to remain in the country. And you can't apply or even live in the US for that matter with I-140 alone. From all the estimations I have read they don't anticipate the categories being current for a very long time but no what to tell for sure at this point.

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hi, since the retrogression is still in place (and will prolly be for a couple more years), i was thinking of applying to another country (such as australia) while waiting. I graduated last 2007 and took all the exams for the US last 2008. If I'll be lucky to get an offer for employment under EB-3 in the US and decide to sign up with a contract and have myself petitioned, will applying in another country affect the process in any way? I was thinking of working in Aus under a working visa (457) for about 2-3 years while my EB-3 visa is being processed. Is it plausible to have that kind of scenario without any glitches? Hope you can share your opinions about the idea. Thanks a lot in advance!!! :D

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I am new on here and I have a ton of questions. I was applyin to H-1C hspitals but one of them told me they could not offer me a job because I have been out of the work force for over a year and a half and to call back when I have some current experience. How do we obtain this current experience when we can not work? Is there some kind of course you can take to get back in the workforce? What are other international US educated nurses doing to maintan a legal status?(I'm on H-4 currently). I have also been thinking about going overseas but I wonder if this will affect the visa processing.

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hi missmaxy. we have almost the same plight. Im on H4 also. if its alright with you, can i have your email address? i wish to share and compare notes. thank you.

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hi, since the retrogression is still in place (and will prolly be for a couple more years), i was thinking of applying to another country (such as australia) while waiting. I graduated last 2007 and took all the exams for the US last 2008. If I'll be lucky to get an offer for employment under EB-3 in the US and decide to sign up with a contract and have myself petitioned, will applying in another country affect the process in any way? I was thinking of working in Aus under a working visa (457) for about 2-3 years while my EB-3 visa is being processed. Is it plausible to have that kind of scenario without any glitches? Hope you can share your opinions about the idea. Thanks a lot in advance!!! :D

Australia usually requires work experience as an RN and you do not mention if you have any.

Working in another country will not affect anything for immigration for the US. Depending on your country of birth, you could be looking up to 7 years and more.

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I am new on here and I have a ton of questions. I was applyin to H-1C hspitals but one of them told me they could not offer me a job because I have been out of the work force for over a year and a half and to call back when I have some current experience. How do we obtain this current experience when we can not work? Is there some kind of course you can take to get back in the workforce? What are other international US educated nurses doing to maintan a legal status?(I'm on H-4 currently). I have also been thinking about going overseas but I wonder if this will affect the visa processing.

18 months ago, there was a very small open window when the I-485 could be submitted. More than 800,000 petitions were submitted at that time and for the EB-3 green card; not all nurses, but their visa comes from the same group. The US issues a total of 140,000 green cards per year under this category. Just by the numbers, it is going to be more than 5 years before things even have a chance of opening up. We have also been under the retrogression for more than two years at this time and there is a large number of nurses that have completed files that are also waiting.

If you are here under the H-4 visa, it means that your spouse is under the H1-B visa. These are only valid for three years and can be renewed just once for a maximum of six years total. Depending on your country of birth, such as if China or India, then things are going to be pushed back even longer for you due to the large number that are already waiting for the green card.

With the H-4 visa, there is nothing that you can do here other than attend school. It does not permit you to do anything else and facilities are not covered for one to volunteer there in the role of the RN as well as the fact that unions do not permit one to work in a roll that would normally be paid except for the fact that the nurse cannot receive payment for it.

H1-C hospitals are only 14 total out of the entire US and not all are actively recruiting at this time. There are only a total of 500 active H1-C visas as well, so not all are able to employ under this as well when they are not available. These visas are set to expire next year as well and can be cancelled at anytime by the US government as well as employer. They also require an actual license in the state where you would be assigned as well as having a Visa Screen Certificate in hand.

Legal status here in the US is dependent upon your spouse's visa. There is not anything else that one can do in terms of nursing experience if they are not on a visa that will permit them to work. Volunteering for something like the Red Cross usually requires a different visa as well.

Going overseas will not affect anything, it is going to be the only way for you to get current work experience.

Best of luck to you.

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hi missmaxy. we have almost the same plight. Im on H4 also. if its alright with you, can i have your email address? i wish to share and compare notes. thank you.

Personal e-mail addresses cannot be posted here on the forums per the TOS of this site.

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