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J1 waiver- A curse!

J1 waiver-A curse!
_____________________________________________________________

Table of Contents

1. Prologue

2. Background

3. Am I even eligible to get a J1 waiver?

4. What Steps did I follow?

4.1. Stage 1: Getting three NORI certificates from Indian Consulate.

4.2. Stage 2: Getting the No Objection certificates from three offices in India-a herculean
task.

4.3. Stage 3: Filling the online DS-3035 and obtaining case number.

4.3.1. STATEMENT OF REASON

4.4. Stage 4: My journey to Washington DC embassy in snow to submit the three NOS

4.5. Stage 5: Waiting…Waiting and more Waiting before obtaining final J1 waiver-Patience is
the Virtue!

5. Some additional points about J1 waiver

1. Prologue

Me (super excited)-“Hello, mom. Happy Marriage Anniversary!”

Mom (confused)-“Thank you. Why are you sounding super excited? You not gonna get any
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gifts from us.”

Me (super excited)-“Mom, I am happy since I finally got my J1 waiver.”

Mom (super confused)-”So, what do I do? You sounding as if you got some Nobel Prize!”

Me (murmuring with head palm)-“It is much superior than a Noble Prize” (for
lucky/smart/genius people who had extreme courage to come to the US on J1 visa)

This would be any parent’s reaction when a J1 visa holder talks to his/her parents over the
phone and tells them that he/she has finally got a J1 waiver.

Since I have learned a lot about J1 waiver from online forums, I thought it would be great to
compile my experiences and help others who are in the process of obtaining this ‘dreaded’
J1 waiver and want to finally get relieved from this ‘J1 curse’.

2. Background

Almost every post doc/visiting scholar who first enters in the US is on J1 visa. Only few
lucky ones are on H1 visa. May be some past life good deeds!!

___

What motivated me to get a J1 waiver?

Everyone has different reasons why they do things in their lives.

I will share the reason which forced me to apply for J1 waiver:

Advisors prefer giving J1 visa to post-docs ONLY because H1 costs them a lot! The
advisors lure people who want to do some research in the US by offering them a J1 visa.
The advisors know that a person on J1 visa will HAVE to work for them like a slave. If he/she
is given H1 visa, then the slave will start thinking beyond what he/she is expected to think. I
requested my advisor to covert my visa from J1 to H1 so that I can apply for my Green
Card. He told me, “I do not have money to sponsor your H1. Already I am paying you a
fortune. If you can arrange for the money, then I am ready to sponsor your H1″. With such a
HIGH salary I am pretty sure paying $ for their own visa will be the last thing on mind of any
post doc. My advisor kept scaring me every day for the first 1.5 years of my post doc (I
joined in July 2012) that he will kick me out if I do not listen to what he wants me to do.

I thought I cannot keep listening to this advisor for many years to come. He CANNOT rule
me. The ONLY reason he was ruling me was because he knew I was dependent on him for
my visa. I decided to fight against his atrocities and thus decided to get Green Card (took a
HUGE leap of faith) and leave his lab ASAP.

Basically the strongest motivation for me to get this J1 waiver was to get out of the clutches
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of this dictator who thought he can rule my life and keep me scared every moment of my
life.

PS: I got freedom from him on 2-14-2015 when I got my green card! Left the lab in March
for an industry job :)

Thanks to this person-Without his motivations (pun intended), I would have never even
thought about applying for a Green Card (while being on J1 visa).

___

I am sure 95% of people who have studied in the US would never accept to work on J1 visa
after completing there degrees (only because they know the ‘magic’ of J1 visa).

Initially everyone is very happy that they got a chance to come to the US. Almost all of us
think that let it be ANY visa, as far as we can enter the US, it is great. J1 visa is the easiest
visa to get. However, all that glitters is not gold. J1 is like a smiling assassin’s trap. We are
very happy when we first get into it (since we do not know it is a trap), but once we know
about its reality, we want to get  out of it immediately. The sooner we realize this reality,
better for our life.

The first time when someone knows that they have to take a J1 waiver, they think ‘this J1
waiver is not applicable to me’. It is same as when someone told my friend, he has xyz
disease, he told “This cannot happen to me”. Please come out of this phase of disbelief
ASAP.

The more you stay in this phase of denial, the more you will delay getting the J1 waiver.

Finally, it is not something which USCIS is forcing on us in this 'free nation’. It is a rule to be
followed (how much ever you deny it!!!!). You have to follow this rule (get this into your
system as quickly as possible!).  You accepted to enter the US on J1 visa (95% people enter
US not knowing about this J1 waiver), so now face the consequences. I can tell this since I
too was in this 'denial’ frame of mind. Reality bites…Ouch!!!

If the thought of J1 waiver stings/hurts you, do not worry. This is not among the “worst”
things that could happen to anyone in life. For anyone who wants to live in the US for a
LONG time, there are many more worse things than getting a J1 waiver viz., Alien abduction,
Alien attack, Zombie apocalypse etc. So do not worry, and just enjoy this process!

Once someone thinks to stay longer in the US, they would think “Why on this earth did I
agree to be on J1 visa? I wish I was on H1” Surely I had this question many times. I felt that
getting eaten up by Zombies would be much better option than getting this ‘dreaded’ J1
waiver.

Since you are reading this blog, you too would be facing the same confusions and problems
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which I had when I first decided to take a J1 waiver.

Friends, we are on the same boat. The ONLY major difference is that I never had a chance
to follow this blog!

Normally, people take J1 waiver at a time when they are towards the end (5th year) of their
post doc or any other course. I took it in 2nd year itself (since I wanted to apply for I-485. I
finally got my Green Card on 2/14/2015). You can even apply for it in the 1st year of your
stay in the US itself. There is NO rule that you have to wait for a certain period of time before
applying for a J1 waiver. However, once you get the J1 waiver, you can no longer extend
your DS2019.

What is the first question that comes to mind when you think about J1 waiver?

3. Am I even eligible to get a J1 waiver?

Many urban legends suggest that “apply for an ‘advisory opinion’ to confirm if you are
eligible to get a J1 waiver or no”. This is a serious waste of 2-3 precious months of life.
People know they need to get a J1 waiver but still want confirmation?

It is like some grown up adult who knows exactly what fire is but still wants to touch it in
order to confirm that it is still as hot as it was before a few years.

On some of my friends’ J1 visa, it was mentioned “Bearer is subject to 212(e). Two year rule
does apply.” However, their DS2019 did not mention about it. They still had to take the
waiver.

I did not have a 212(e) mentioned on either my DS-2019 or my visa.

I was very relaxed when I saw my visa had following words “Bearer is not subject to 212(e).
Two year rule does not apply.” Also, my DS2019 did not mention about my need to take a
J1 waiver. However, I knew I had to take it depending on my subject (Chemistry) and my
country (India).

When in doubt whether you are needed to take a J1 waiver or no, please refer to the
following website:

http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/english/study-exchange/student/residency-waiver.html

After reading many cases online about J1 waiver, I have come across only 1-2% cases
where the scholar did not have to take a J1 waiver. Otherwise, it has to be taken depending
on your skill list and nationality /government funding.

If you find out from the above website that you are fit to get a J1 waiver, then DO NOT
waste your time in ‘advisory opinion’.
Normally, you are needed to take a J1 waiver (as far as I know-and my knowledge is limited)
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via No-Objection route only if

a) Your subject falls in the skill list of your respective country (see link above)

b) Your J1 visa was sponsored either by US govt. (NIH, NSF, NASA etc) or your home
country’s government

c) I do not know any other reason as of now. If I come to know, I will update the blog.

If neither of a) or b) are true in your case, ONLY then I would suggest apply for an 'advisory
opinion’

As far as I know, chances of getting a J1 waiver for scholars who come to the US on a
Fulbright fellowship are not very bright (specially for Indians).

I know every researcher (specially Indian) on Fulbright fellowship would be thinking that
'Why on this earth did I accept to come to the US on this fellowship, when chances of
getting a waiver are next to zero?’ I can totally understand what you must be feeling.

So once I got this huge shock of my life that I have to get a J1 waiver (how can this happen
to me??? This world has never been fair to me!), I started reading many websites and slowly
understood what has to be done to get I-612 (I-612 is the final J1 waiver which USCIS
sends to our apartments). I have divided this process into five stages.

4. What steps did I follow?

There are 5 stages I passed through in order to break free from this J1 waiver curse.

4.1. Stage 1: Getting three NORI certificates from Indian Consulate.

In this stage, you have to obtain No objection to Return to India (NORI) forms from Indian
Consulate in US.

The Indian Consulate you go to obtain the NORI documents depends on the state you live in
US. I am doing my post doc in VA. After searching on internet, I realized that VA comes
under jurisdiction of Indian Embassy in Washington DC. I went to Washington DC website
and then understood that they need the following documents. I went to the Indian Embassy
on 11-1-2013 (1st November 2013).

 1) Miscellaneous Services Form (experience says this form is ALWAYS to be submitted
during any communications with Indian Embassies)

2) Current passport in original and photocopy of the first five pages and last two pages of
the current passports. (I was not confident about sending my passport to Indian Embassy
and thus went personally.) 
3) Proof of your US Visa Status:

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Photocopy of the page containing visa on passport (J1 visa), all DS2019 copies, a copy of I-
94 (notarized)

4) One Proof of current US residence address:

House Lease Agreement (notarized), electric bill (notarized) etc

5) NORI Form [Complete the NORI form (including both parts, (i) bio data (pdf file) and (ii)
affidavit) (pdf file)—in 6 (six) originals.  Notarized all 6 originals.  Submit all 6 originals
(notarized)  and 2 photocopies.]

6 originals are mentioned on the Washington DC website. However, the lady at the counter
asks for ONLY four.

6) $ 60 Money order (if document sent via courier/post) or cash (if gone in person). In
addition, they also ask for an additional $3 for the miscellaneous form.

I got the three NORIs (to be sent to India) in hand within 2 hours on 11-1-2013.

4.2. Stage 2: Getting the No Objection certificates from three offices in India-a
herculean task.

So, after receiving the three NORIs from the Washington DC office, I thought now it is going
to be very easy. So now is the time to throw a party?

BEWARE! DO NOT RELAX!

This 2nd Stage can be a nightmare if someone is not hyper active. This is because in this
stage of J1 waiver, we have to deal with Indian authorities (in government offices)!!!!

I knew that this stage is going to take me infinite time and thus I kept all documents ready.

Once I got the three NORIs from Stage 1, I sent the following documents to my home in
India (in three different envelopes):

1. Cover letter (I have pasted a sample cover letter at the completion of this stage)
2. Attested statement and affidavit (these are the documents you get from Indian
embassy)
3. Copies of Passport
4. Copies of degree certificates
5. DS2019
6. Resume

I sent all the documents via FedEx on 11-7-2013. The documents reached my home in
Mumbai on 11-11-2013. My parents helped me in getting all the three NORI. I am very
grateful to them!
Please try to use FedEx or UPS. I once sent some document via USPS (within US) and it
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reached after 14 days (it was a 2 day priority). From that day I decided to use either FedEx
or UPS.

USPS will definitely save money though!

In this stage, we are supposed to send the three NORI documents obtained in Stage 1 to
three Indian government offices:

i) Ministry of Human Resources Development, Delhi (common for all J1 waivers from India)

ii) Regional passport office (mine was Mumbai-since my passport was issued from Mumbai)

iii) State government (mine was Maharashtra-since I am from Maharashtra)

My experiences about each office:

i) Ministry of Human Resources Development, Delhi (common for all J1 waivers from
India)

I will describe two versions here:Outdated version (Pre Feb 2016 and Post

2016):

A) Outdated version (pre Feb 2016)

‘As soon as my parents received the documents which I sent them in three envelopes, they
sent the envelope having the New Delhi address the very next day to respected office. The
envelope reached the new Delhi office on 11-15-2013.

This was the easiest office to deal with. NO follow up was required. The NORI reached my
apartment exactly within 45 days. I wish all government offices work as quickly and
efficiently as this office.

I sent documents to the following address (please confirm the address prior to mailing the
NORIs - Addresses may change with time!):

Section Officer, ES-5 Section,

External Scholarship Division,

2nd Floor, Wing-6, West Block-1,

R.K. Puram, Delhi-110 066

Contact No: +91-11-23386451 (hope this no. does not change!)

The address can be found at the following website (scroll towards the end of the link):
http://mhrd.gov.in/Scholarship_nori’
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___

B) Current version (post Feb 2016)

“Please note that w.e.f. 27 February 2016, the Ministry of Human Resource Development
(MHRD) has launched a new portal http://nori.ac.in/ for receiving online applications for
NORI. Applicants would have to apply online for submission of attested documents to
MHRD and to receive MHRD’s clearance. MHRD will continue to receive physical form of
application for 90 days from the commencement of the new website (27 February 2016).
Post 90 days, physical application will not be accepted by MHRD for the purpose.Upon
receiving the attested documents from the Consulate, applicants would be required to
upload the attested biodata and affidavit forms on the MHRD website." 

So now after India got MODIfied, even J1 waiver process is facing the ripples of
MODIfication.

I hope Regional passport offices and state govt follow the track of MHRD and start a
website for this process as well.

___

”There are many ways to earn money in the world:some work hard and process
documents while some don’t start work without getting document$”

                                                                                       -chemgc205′s quote ;)

ii) Regional passport office (mine was Mumbai-since my passport was issued from
Mumbai)

My father went personally to the RPO. Since it is a government office in India, we need to
know how to get the work done. My father had to go to this office twice, so as to
understand whom to meet to get the work done as soon as possible.

If we do not understand what document$ they want from us, they will also never understand
what documents we want from them!!!

Just FYI: Rs 500 (old notes) and Rs 1000 have been banned. I do not know why I felt like
putting this information here, right after the word ‘document$‘ ;) Sometimes I do stuff which
is meaningless to many- but I still do them- I just trolled my own blog ;)

Moreover, giving document$ to key people is the most important thing. A keen observation
for 1-2 days before approaching the official who can help us is very important. You can
compare this scenario to a child observing others play a game (by observation, asking
relevant questions etc), before he/she can start playing themselves.
So finally after providing all necessary document$ (to both lower and higher authorities) at
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the RPO, the NORI was sent directly to the Washington DC office within one week. I never
got the NORI at my apartment.

iii) State government (mine was Maharashtra-since I am from Maharashtra)

This can be a real nightmare. Anyone who can get NORI from this office within 2 weeks or
less can achieve anything in this world. That person according to me deserves to get a
Nobel Prize (because without some novel approach, it is not possible to get it) or even an
Oscar (high quality acting needed too).

I would honestly suggest take help from your near and dear ones to get the NORI from this
office. Otherwise the time can go from 'anything’ upto ‘infinity’. My father helped me in
getting NORI from this office too.

Firstly, my father had to go to the office two or three times in order to understand which
authority can help us to get the work done ASAP (it is like match practice before the real
match). Normally lower authorities in this office will help in getting work done at a brisk
pace. Need to make a few rounds to find the exact authority. However, if there are some
connections (we did not have any) in this office, then the work becomes much smoother.

My father handed over all the necessary documents and document$ related to NORI to
some authority (and took his cellphone number-so as to ask about the progress of the case).

Once this lower level authority gets the document$ he wants, trust me, they REALLY do the
work—and much faster than the best MNC people in the world. If after taking necessary
document$, the govt. officals cannot do the work, it means they are not lying. The work
cannot be done by anyone. Atleast they are super honest and work for you after getting all
document$. I admire this quality of theirs (pun intended)!

Once documents were submitted here, it first goes to CID office (Daya, Darwaaza tod do!!!).
From CID office, it is sent to local police station. Then some cop comes home and makes
parents sign affidavit and does police verification.

In this stage, document$ are MOST important. Do not feel ashamed to ask how many
document$ are needed. It is their right NOT to do your work without getting proper
document$.

Once this stage is cleared, then the police verification with affidavit (signed by parents) goes
to the State Government office again. Hence again the cycle of document$ begin. This time
even higher authority (who will sign the NORI) must be given appropriate document$.
Otherwise, work will remain pending.

Then within 2-3 weeks, the NORI will finally reach your apartment in US. Follow-up is a
MUST in this stage.
P. S.: In both the govt. offices (ii) and (iii) till when all appropriate document$ are not
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provided to both lower and higher authorities, the work is NOT gonna be done. Even if it is
done, it will take ‘infinite’ time. Let me play a devil’s advocate here: Chose what is more
important? ‘Time’ or giving all relevant ‘Document$’.

So I finally got this NORI in approx. 2.5 months at my apartment in US.

I treated myself with an ice cream once I got all three NORIs from Indian offices (I mean two
reached my apartment in US and one reached Indian Embassy directly). For the third NORI
from passport office, I mailed the Indian Embassy in DC along with my name and passport
number. The person mailed me within 1 hour a soft copy of the NORI from RPO.

Email id of Indian embassy is: attacheconsular@indiagov.org  and the contact person is Mr.
K. N. Jha. He replies back immediately. If not, keep mailing again and again till when out of
frustration you do get some reply. I would wait for 2 hour after mailing the first email. If I get
reply, then no problems. If not, then a chain of emails begins. Luckily my id was not put in a
spam folder! So what if someone puts our email id in spam folder? We can always make
another email id and start the mailing cycle again. Finally it is our work and we need to get it
done ASAP. (This email id is for Indian Embassy. You may need to email respective
consulates if Indian Embassy authority tells they have not yet received the NORI)

Altogether, It was a very depressing and exciting process! Alas, all is well that ends well.

I don’t remember the exact dates but I received all three NORIs by 2-14-2014. Some people
are lonely on valentine’s day. However, I was not! The three NORIs were my valentines ;)

Trust me, you will encounter almost ALL emotions of your life within a short span of 2-3
months. It is a real thrill experience.

I discovered the following equation while going through this stage:

Amount of time required to get NORIs from passport office and state government ∝
Speed at which you give document$ to appropriate people

Should my name be recommended for a Nobel Prize for this discovery?

Cover letter

Subject: Request to grant No Obligation to return to India (NORI) certificate

Dear Authority,

            I am working as a Post Doctoral Fellow (Passport No xxx) at xxx Department, xxx
University, xxx, USA on a J-1 exchange visitor visa. I would like to convert my visa status
from J-1 to H-1. In order to enable the Embassy of India to issue a waiver certificate for the
conversion of J-1 visa to H-1, it is necessary for me to obtain a clearance from the
Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development. In this context, I
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humbly request you to issue me a No Obligation to Return to India (NORI) certificate. I am
here with enclosing the required testimonials for your reference.

Thanking you,

Yours Sincerely,

  (name)

Enclosures:

1. Attested statement and affidavit

2. Copies of Passport
3. Copies of degree certificates
4. DS2019

4.3. Stage 3: Filling the online DS-3035 and obtaining case number.

I filled the DS-3035 the same day I got all three NORI from India (I could have filled this
earlier-however; I did not fill it out of sheer laziness).

While filling DS-305, you would need your passport, very first I-94 (the first time you arrived
in US) and all DS2019s you received till date.

Yeh, you will also need a ‘statement of reason’. 

Once you have all the documents (please note: hence forth I will mention documents and
not document$ since $ is not needed).

Please enter the exact alphabets and numbers you see in your passport, I-94 and DS2019s
into DS3035.

I filled the DS3035 and sent following documents to the Waiver Review Division (WRD):

1. Application fees: Money order/Demand draft/casiher’s check of $120 (write your name,
address, DOB, SSN and DS3035 case no. on it.) P. S.: Prior to Sept 2014, the
application fees was $215. At least now J1 waiver will be a bit easier on pockets!
2. Waiver review division bar code page
3. Signed Form DS3035 and Supplementary Information pages
4. Statement of Reason (given at the end of this stage)
5. Passport copies (biographical information)
6. Copies of all DS2019 forms ever issued to me
7. Two Self addressed, stamped envelopes (mention case no. on these envelopes too!)

Cover letter is given at the end of this stage

On all documents you send to the WRD, please put your DS3035 case number onto each
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and every page.

 Please read (and definitely follow) all instructions on DS3035. Not at all a rocket science!

Tip: Please fill the DS3035 accurately. I have heard (may be another urban legend) that the
DOS is very strict regarding errors on DS3035. Precaution is better than cure.

It is better to send these documents via some tracking courier company (my choice is
FedEx)

Once these documents are sent-do not worry about this stage. Now you cannot do
anything. The WRD first screens all documents and then sends them to the Department of
State (DOS) in Washington DC.

I have given my DS3035 timeline at the end. Giving it here would interrupt the flow of the
write-up.

Once you get your DS3035 case number, you can track your J1 waiver progress on this
website:

http://j1visawaiverstatus.state.gov/

If you have any queries with the DOS, the email id is: 212ewaiver@state.gov

P.S.: 1) Once you mail the DOS asking about your case status, they will reply back
sometimes immediately or sometimes within 2-3 days and max 5 days.

        2) If you mail same message about 10 times a day, then honestly, the reply comes
quicker (personal experience-no joke or pun in this)

        3) The DOS website gets updated anytime after 2 am EST. If you are so excited about
knowing DOS updates (as if it was Oscar award night), then please keep checking after 2
am EST (upto anytime!!!).   There is no use checking it in the whole day (it is a serious time
waste). Initially I used to check it after every 10 minutes for my J1 waiver status (as if some
magic was going to happen in 10 minutes). Please check it once in a day when you start
your computer. Still if you wish, you can keep checking the DOS website every minute :)

   4) We are asked to send two self addressed, stamped envelopes to DOS. I am not
understanding the exact reason for this! For me, I got ONLY one envelope I sent to DOS at
my apartment (which had a DOS favorable recommendation in it). USCIS sends its own
envelopes. It never uses any other envelopes. My only guess is that DOS asks for two Self
addressed stamped envelopes so that if one gets damaged/tears apart (I do not know why),
then the second envelope can be used as a replacement. One of my friends told the second
envelope goes to the international students office of the university/school which issued your
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DS-2019. If this theory is correct, then why is the second envelope having our address and
not of the university?

5) Now a days (2014) [I have mentioned the year so that in 2024 no one asks me about it],
DOS is taking anything between 15-30 days to give its decision (I mean decision-not an
approval). This 15-30 days is from the time DOS received DS3035 as well as No objection
statement (NOS) from your country’s embassy.

6) Question#6 in DS3035: “Did your exchange visitor program(s) include USG funds, funds
from your own govt or funds from an international organization.

Reply with a 'NO’-only if you are 100% sure that your J1 visa has not been funded by USG,
your own country or some international organization. Funding source is mentioned on the
DS2019.

Hint: If it is mentioned on your DS2019 that 'University of XYZ’ has sponsored your J1 visa,
then 95% times the answer to the Question#6 in your DS3035 will be a 'NO’

When in doubt, ask your adviser or international students organization at your university
about this. Adviser would be the best person to ask this question since he/she knows your
funding situation the best! It is better to ask questions and fill proper answer! Better to be
safe than sorry!

7) Try not to make any mistake while filling online DS3035. However, even if you make a
mistake please do not worry. I tend to make mistakes easily while filling forms. As per my
great history in making mistakes, I made three mistakes in my DS3035. I searched online for
some answers about it. I could find none. So I decided to fill another DS3035 (and got a new
case number). I again found a mistake. So, I had to get a third case number. Finally I sent
my DS3035 to DOS with the third case no. If I would have not checked my DS3035 the first
time I filled it (with mistakes), I would not be able to write this blog (you can understand the
reason why!). So please check your DS3035 a few times so as to avoid any mistakes in it. 

The greatest unsolved puzzle I have in this stage: Where did my second self addressed
stamped envelope go? No answers yet! My speculations: Alien abduction, Bermuda triangle
mystery, or the second envelope simply time traveled! If you can think of any other reasons,
please let me know.

Cover letter:

From

chemgc205@gmail.com

To  (The following is the address if FedEx/UPS are delivering the documents. For
USPS, please see the J1 waiver website)

U.S. Department of State

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Waiver Review Division

(Box 952137)

1005 Convention Plaza

St. Louis, MO 63101-1200

Subject: Request to grant J1 waiver through ‘No Objection’

Dear Authority,

             I am Mr. chemgc205, working as a Research Associate (Case number: xxxxxx) at

Department of xyz, University of xyz, USA on a J-1 exchange visitor visa. I have completed
my PhD in xyz from xyz, India. I am subjected to 212 (e) and thus I need to get a waiver for
successful completion of my project.

I shall be highly obliged if you could consider this Waiver application favorably.

Thanking you,

Yours Sincerely,

 (chemgc205)

Enclosures:

1.      Application fees: Money order of $120 (prior to Sept 2014, it was $215)
2.  Waiver review division barcode page
3.      Signed Form DS3035 and Supplementary Information pages
4.  Statement of Reason
5.     Passport copies (biographical information)
6.  Copies of all DS2019 forms ever issued to me
7.    Two Self addressed, stamped envelopes (it can be any damn envelope in this world.
Please do not worry about the size of the envelope. It should be large enough so that
one A4 size page can fit into it with three folds-this is how DOS sent me the J1 waiver
favorable recommendation document.)

4.3.1. STATEMENT OF REASON

Dear Authority,

I, Dr. chemgc205, am a Research Associate at the University of xyz and currently doing
scientific research in the field of xyz. I am currently on J1 visa sponsored by University of
xyz. My studies focus on development of xyz..
(write 5-6 lines about what you work on-DO NOT worry about what to write about your
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research. Please do not think DOS people are gonna read what you work on, carry out a
thorough literature survey, perform experiments on your topic and then decide whether to
give you a J1 waiver or no.

If you do not know anything about what you are working on, then even writing your favorite
movie story/song should serve the purpose. Just see to it that you make it look scientific. ;)

[Example of this would be: “The main aim of this work is to understand the DDLJ process. In
this process we first begin with Simranology’s mere khwabon mein jo aaye syndrome. Then
we try to understand the chemistry between Rajistry and Simranology which results into
hogaya hai tuj koto pyaar sajana and ruk ja ohdilstry diwanelogy phenomena. Also what I
study is the way Rajistry and Simranology interact during tuje dekha toye jana sanam, zara
sa jhoomatics lumeintics and even during mehndi laga ke rakhnalytics. My work also
focuses on how babuji interfered and performed aey meri zohranalytic jabhiysics. If granted
a J1 waiver my future work would focus on another phenomenon Yejo deshics hai teralytics,
swadeshics hai teralytics.

If waiver is  not granted then I wil go into Devdaasology mode. My condition will be like
Kaun kambakht bardaasht karne ko peetalogistics hai, hum to peete hai taaki J1 waiver nahi
milne ke gam ko bhoola sake.

(If anyone can/want to add something funny to this, my email id is chemgc205@gmail.com)”

P.S.: I gave this example ONLY to make a point that you just need a few lines about what
you work on and not waste hours/days of your time figuring out what to write in this section.
Do you think any Waiver division person has even 0.1% interest in your technical skills? All
they need is key words must be present inside the application. ]

In the current scenario it appears to me as well as my employer that the undergoing

research work should not be discontinued for two years due to 212 (E) constraints and I
should stay in The U.S. for some more time and complete the projects in-hand.

I am eligible to receive a waiver of the two-year home country residence requirement of the
exchange visitor program because The Government of India has No Objection if I continue
further scientific research work in The United States and stay here for a longer time and
change my status to any other type of Visa.

My Home country has provided me with NOS based on the achievement and the expected
knowledge which will be gained from my presence in US without interruption. A No
Objection Certificate in my favor would be forwarded to you by Indian Embassy in
Washington DC in this regards.

I strongly believe that my home country will be benefited from that research in many ways,
the benefits of which will be affected if I returned for two years.  
In addition, these projects require facilities which are not available in my home country. By
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staying here, I will continue to contribute to the goals of my J1 program by exchanging with
my country of origin through research, collaboration, and research related visits.

Furthermore, I was NOT sponsored or provided with any privileges, loans or scholarships by
Government of India or any International organization or the US government. I have NOT
given any undertaking to return to India, my Home Country.

The above conditions along with previously stated academic requirements make me eligible
for a waiver of Home Residency Requirement. Therefore, I request you to kindly consider my
situation to grant a waiver for HRR.

Therefore, based on a "no objection certificate” from my Home Government, I would like to
apply a waiver of the two-year home country residency requirement. A No Objection
Certificate in my favor would be forwarded to you by Indian Embassy in Washington DC in
this regards.

I gratefully appreciate your support and assistance for waiving of my two-year home country
residence requirement.

I shall be highly obliged if you could consider this Waiver application favorably.

Thanks,

 Dr. chemgc205

Research Associate

University of XYZ

4.4. Stage 4: My journey to Washington DC embassy in snow to submit the three NOS

Once I sent the documents to the WRD, the next step was to go back to the Washington DC
embassy   (I did not prefer mailing them the passport-who knows if they get lost
somewhere?) with all the three NORI. It was a snowy day and I had to go to the DC
embassy. I reached around 11 pm.

I took the following documents along with me:

1. Cover letter. (provided at the end of this stage)

2. Third party Barcode page of DS-3035 (CASE NUMBER - xxxxxx).

3. Copies (Not originals) of NORI certificates issued by

(i) Regional Passport Office, Mumbai, Maharashtra, INDIA

(ii) The Home Department, Secretariat, Mumbai, Maharashtra, INDIA
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(iii) The Ministry of Human Resource Development, New Delhi, INDIA

4. Copies of Passport data page and Visa pages

5. Copies of DS 2019   

6. Copy of local address (apartment lease)

7. Copy of Miscellaneous form (always to be taken)

8. $20 for NOS+$3 (in cash) for Miscellaneous form.

I gave all my documents along with original passport to the lady at the counter. They issued
the final NOS on the same day (within 1 hour).

BEWARE! They made many spelling mistakes while typing my NOS. Thus, please check the
NOS on the spot. I got it changed twice! The lady told ‘sorry’ and changed it two times.
When I gave the NOS for second correction, I thought the lady will shout at me and tell me
to get lost (Indian experience). However, nothing of this happened. They corrected the
mistakes immediately and told now I need not worry. They will send the NOS to DOS in
Washington DC.

I walked out happily with NOS in my hand. I felt as if I got admitted into MIT. I was looking at
the NOS again and again as if I won some lottery worth one billion dollars. I could not
believe that I do not need to deal anymore with Indian side of the J1 waiver process
anymore. All excitement and thrill from the life is gone :(

Luckily, it stopped snowing! Some good sign?

(My friendly suggestion would be-If possible please go to the consulate/embassy personally.
This will save plenty of your time. I think I saved almost 3-4 weeks by going personally. Also,
there are no worries about some document getting lost/not received by the consulate
/embassy. One can go to Indian Embassy in Washington DC directly if the state they are
residing falls under the jurisdiction of Indian embassy. For all others, it is Indian consulate.
The Indian consulate then forwards the documents to Indian embassy in DC. Finally, the
NOS must reach the DOS via embassy of your country and not through the consulate of
your country.)

The three NORIs you received from the Indian govt. side (Stage 2 above), gets miraculously
converted into one single NOS. You DO NOT have to send NORIs you received from Indian
govt. to the DOS.

Cover letter:

From
chemgc205@gmail.com
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To

EMBASSY OF INDIA

(CONSULAR WING)

2536 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20008

Dear Authority,

I am Mr. chemgc205 (passport No. A123456). I am on J1 visa, which is due to expire in a

year’s time. So, I had applied for NORI, and received the NORI certificates from all the three
offices in INDIA. Now I wish to proceed for Stage-III of NORI application (DS3035 case No.
xxxxxx). Herewith I have enclosed the supporting documents for further processing of
Stage-III of NORI application.

I would be grateful, if you could forward the No Objection Certificate to Embassy of India in
Washington DC at your earliest convenience.

 Thanking you,

Yours sincerely

chemgc205@gmail.com

4.5. Stage 5: Waiting…Waiting and more Waiting before obtaining final J1 waiver-
Patience is the Virtue!

Now here, I am giving the timeline since nothing exciting to discuss about! Just wait and
watch!

If your past life deeds were good, you shall see the timeline move very fast!

My timeline:

Submitted forms to WRD (in Saint Louis): Feb 25, 2014

Went to Indian embassy in DC (for others it may be consulates depending on their

respective locations): Feb 26, 2014

Form DS-3035 Received by DOS: March 13, 2014

No Objection Statement Received by DOS: March 26, 2014

Request for Sponsor Views Sent: (did not get this since I did not have any direct/indirect
government funding mentioned on my DS2019.)
Sponsor Views Received: NA
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Favorable Recommendation Sent: April 22, 2014

DOS 'Favorable Recommendation’ received: May 2, 2014 (in one of the self addressed,
stamped envelopes which I had sent them)

USCIS I-797c receipt received: May 5, 2014 (in USCIS’s own envelope)

Final J1 waiver (I-612) received at my apartment: May 21, 2014 (in USCIS’s own envelope)

Once DOS has given a favorable recommendation for your J1 waiver, USCIS will follow the
same (in 99.999% cases). USCIS does not work on FIFO approach. The speed at which you
will get your final J1 waiver (I-612) will depend on the work load on the Investigating Officer
(IO) or even the speed with which he/she works. If some IO is like Chuck Norris or Rajnikant,
then you may get the final J1 waiver within a few days of DOS favorable recommendation.
Please do not worry. All will get the waiver at their apartments-sooner or later.

So, this is how I got rid of this J1 waiver curse on 5-21-2014. Coincidentally, it was my
parent’s wedding anniversary too!!!

When I got this J1 waiver, I thought I can now apply for some post doc on
Moon/Jupiter/Venus!

I also thought to frame it and keep it along with me as a great achievement. I think I need to
put it as an accomplishment even in my resume! What say?

If you got bored after reading my post about lifting this ‘J1 waiver curse’ from your life, I am
sorry about it-I have a very bad habit of writing extra stuff.

Jokes apart, if you have any further questions about J1 waiver, please feel free to mail me at
chemgc205@gmail.com.

4.6. Some additional points about J1 waiver:

i) Go for obtaining a J1 waiver ONLY when

a) You are sure you cannot get it extended any further (five years maximum);

b) You got some new job and the employer is willing to sponsor your H1 visa;

c) If you planning to apply for I-485 (I applied my J1 waiver in 2nd year of my post doc.
There is no rule that post docs/research scholars need to finish certain period of time in the
US before applying for a J1 waiver via No Objection route).

d) You want to do some thrilling stuff in your life-just for experience

2) Once you get your J1 waiver, you CANNOT extend your DS2019 any further.
3) I-140 stage of green card does not need you to have a J1 waiver. However, for I-485 it is a
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requirement.

4) Even if your spouse is a US citizen, you have to get rid of this J1 waiver curse.

5) If DOS does not give a favorable recommendation for your J1 waiver via No Objection
route, you cannot apply again for J1 waiver via the same route. Then you may have to check
about other routes (for which I have no knowledge)

6) A “No Objection” case is the ONLY situation where an alien is allowed to file an
adjustment application concurrently with a pending J1 waiver request.Here, pending means-
pending with the USCIS and NOT with DOS or Indian Embassy.

7) We get a J1 visa stamped on our passport from the home country (mine is India). Even if a
J1 visa expires on a passport there is no problem. However, dates on DS2019 should not
expire. Once they expire, you are no longer on J1 status and have to leave the US within 1
month (grace period). This grace period is given so that the J1 scholar can pack up all of
his/her stuff, meet friends and relatives, visit places etc (in short a tourist). This grace period
is strictly not for work. This means a J1 visa and DS2019 are not the same. DS2019 is used
to get J1 visa stamp on passport. So, even if you are in US for 3 years continuously, even
after your J1 visa expires (on the passport), there is no problem. However, if you stay in US
any time after the 1 month grace period (after dates on DS2019 expire), it can be
problematic.

8)“If somebody on J1 visa (without a waiver), applies for green card (GC), (and God forbid) is
denied the GC, can he apply for H1?”

A- No. Without a J1 waiver, some one cannot change his/her visa status. Someone on J1
(without a waiver), is surely going to be denied GC (I-485) on the spot. Moreover, H1
application is also not possible. Such a person can stay in the US ONLY up till when his/her
DS2019 is valid.

9) If somebody is on J1 (with waiver), applies for GC (and God forbid) is denied the GC, can
he get H1?

A-Yes. Sure. GC has nothing to do with H1. That person can get H1.

10) If someone does not get GC (GOD forbids) when on J1, he/she can get H1-provided
they have the J1 waiver.
11) If I-485 gets denied (this rarely happens if I-140 is approved),
then no problems. Person can still go on H1.Since H1 is dual intent. However, that person
cannot go again on J1 visa again since it is not a dual intent visa.

11) What happens to the spouse (J2 visa) of a J1 visa person?

Following can be options:

a) If the J1 waiver gets approved/rejected, exactly the same happens to the J2 visa
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dependent.

b) Spouse can go onto other immigrant visa type (H1, L1 or GC), ONLY once J1 waiver is
approved

12) Should you stay on J1 visa or get converted to H1 visa type?

This depends totally on personal choice. I will explain how.

a) If the spouse of J1 visa person wants to work in the US, then please stay on J1 visa. J2
visa people can work (this is the ONLY one positive thing of J1 visa)

b) If you convert to H1 visa, the spouse will not be able to work (on H4 visa) until you have I-
140 approved. Please see H4-EAD rule for this point (out of scope of this blog)

c) With H1 visa, you can apply for green card via EB2-NIW (for Indians and Chinese). All
other nationalities can apply for EB2-NIW on any damn visa. However, it will take 5-6 years
to get the green card via this EB2-NIW route (specially for Indians). Ofcourse you can apply
for green card via EB1A/B categories too.

d) With J1 visa, you are totally restricted with respect to Green Card. EB2-NIW based green
card will be very difficult (for Indians) to get on J1 visa. You must apply for Green Card on J1
visa ONLY if it is EB1A/B category.

13) If I-485 gets denied and if the person is working on EAD (which he/she got due to I-485
filing), that person has to leave the US immediately.

14) If I-485 gets denied and the person is on J1, he can stay only up to the dates written on
DS2019. If such a person has a waiver, that person can go for H1 visa easily.

15) If someone is on H1B visa and your I-485 is denied, your H1B remains valid. The only
time you would be out of status is if you switch from H-1B to EAD, and then your I-485 is
denied.

16) If I-485 gets denied and the person is on H1B, he can again apply for I-485 provided
that the H1B is valid.

17) If you have a J-waiver at the time you file the I-140, you may wish to concurrently file the
I-140 and I-485 for AOS (adjustment of status). By filing an I-485 you will have a valid visa
status based on your pending I-485 known as AOS. This AOS visa status allows you to stay
in the US while your I-485 is pending. With the I-485 you can file an I-765 to apply for an
Employment Authorization Document (EAD) (no additional filing fee). You can use the EAD to
work in the US while your I-485 is pending.
18) If you apply for I-485 and your DS2019 is expiring after a few days, then you can stay in
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the US (you will not be out of status). Once you get EAD due to pending I-485, you can start
working again. If you do not want to wait for EAD, then even H1B is an option. However, if
once you use your EAD and either I-140/I-485 gets denied, then you will have to leave US
immediately. However, If you shift from J1 to H1B, then even if I-140/I-485 gets denied, you
will not be out of status and you can apply again for I-140/I-485 while on H1B.

19) DO NOT get a Green Card if you are not married. It is super difficult to find a spouse
once green card is obtained (Personal Experience. Pray for me :-I will remove this once I find
some girl to marry. I think a blog on finding an Indian bride for marriage will be great one
LOL)).

After getting a Green Card, I sometimes wish I was on J1/H1 ;) since spouse could have
easily come on J2/H4 visa. This is curse of Green card friends..DO NOT…I MEAN “DO NOT”
apply for GC if you are not married..many are lucky enough to find spouse after GC too….I
am not that lucky yet….please pray for me :) :) :)

A Rule of thumb is: Either get the J1 waiver (I-612), or go back to your home country for 2
years and then apply for H1/GC.

Disclaimer - The views expressed in this post do not constitute as legal opinion and are not
exhaustive in any sense. They are intended to be only used as a guide. In case of specific
clarification, please contact a legal representative. This posts lists waiver procedure based
on No-Objection Certification from your home country. My home country is India, but I
assume the procedure is pretty similar for other countries. Also, please visit respective
consular websites since this blog is ONLY my experience of obtaining J1 waiver.

___

P.S.: Please email me what improvisations are required to this blog so that it becomes
helpful for other lucky J1 waiver friends. All suggestions will be incorporated herewith.
Please do not forget to write about your experiences in the comment section
below/email me.

Did this blog really help you?

Since I am not following J1 waiver process now a days, if anyone finds that any
information mentioned in this blog is out dated (just like Rs 500/ Rs 1000 notes), then
please do not forget to email me the new information. I will promptly update the blog.
This will help many down the line.

Email id: chemgc205@gmail.com

[Many friends email me and ask me to write my real name at the end of this blog so
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that people can know who I am…I apologize to all that I am unable to write my name
anywhere in the blog :)]