Nurse – Immigrant – Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status

Definitions

"Applicant" is you

"Application" is the Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status

Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status

Congress has provided a means by which you may become a permanent resident without departing the United States. Pursuant to this legislation, you must have been inspected and admitted to the United States; be lawfully present in the United States; a visa number must be immediately available to you; and you must file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.

Inspected and Admitted to the United States

This means that an Immigration and Naturalization Service officer inspected you at a port of entry and admitted her/him to the United States.

Foreign Nurses Ineligible to File an Application Even if Inspected and Admitted to the United States

If an Immigration and Naturalization Service officer inspected you at a port of entry and admitted you to the United States you remain ineligible to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status if you entered the United States in transit without a visa; were admitted as a nonimmigrant crewman; were admitted to Guam as a visitor under the Guam visa waiver program; were admitted as a J-1 or J-2 exchange visitor who was or is subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement and did not comply with the requirement or you have not been granted a waiver of the requirement; were admitted in an A, E or G nonimmigrant category (unless you complete a supplemental form waiving diplomatic rights, privileges and immunities); or were admitted as a visitor pursuant to the Visa Waiver Pilot Program.

Foreign Nurses Ineligible to File an Application Even if Inspected and Admitted to the United States but Out of Status

If an Immigration and Naturalization Service officer inspected you at a port of entry and admitted you to the United States you remain ineligible to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status if your authorized stay in the United States expired or you have failed to maintain lawful status before you filed an Application.

Foreign Nurses Ineligible to File an Application Even if Inspected and Admitted to the United States but Engaged in Unauthorized Employment

If an Immigration and Naturalization Service officer inspected you at a port of entry and admitted you to the United States you remain ineligible to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status if you worked in the United States without authorization by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Foreign Nurses Eligible to File an Application Pursuant to Immigration and Nationality Act Section 245(i)

In 1994 Congress supplemented the Immigration and Nationality Act by adding Section 245(i) that allows foreign nationals, who would normally be ineligible, to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. These classes of foreign nationals include those who entered the United States without being inspected by an Immigration and Naturalization Service inspector; as a visitor pursuant to the Visa Waiver Pilot Program; whose authorized stay in the United States expired or who have failed to maintain lawful status; have worked in the United States without authorization by the Immigration and Naturalization Service; entered the United States in transit without a visa; or as a D nonimmigrant crewman. Please note that this law ended on April 30, 2001. However, there is current proposed legislation that may extend Immigration and Nationality Act Section 245(i).

Foreign Nurses Ineligible to File an Application Even with Immigration and Nationality Act Section 245(i)

Even with the implementation of Immigration and Nationality Act Section 245(i) certain classes of foreign nationals remain ineligible to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. These classes of foreign nationals include stowaways; J-1 or J-2 exchange visitors who were or are subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement and did not comply with the requirement or have not been granted a waiver of the requirement; and those subject to the three and ten year bars.

Immediately Available Immigrant Visa

Congress has set a numerical limitation of 140,000 foreign nationals that may immigrate to the United States based upon employment during a fiscal year. Typically, there is a greater demand for immigrant visas than are available during a fiscal year. As such, the Department of State Visa Office maintains a waiting list of foreign nationals who wish to immigrate to the United States. Your place on the waiting list is determined by your priority date. On a monthly basis the Department of State Visa Office publishes a bulletin, which designates a cut-off date for processing of immigrant visas in each preference category. If your priority date is earlier than the cut-off date established by the Department of State Visa Office for the third preference category then an immigrant visa is immediately available allowing you to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. Please note that in some preference categories there is less of a demand for immigrant visas than are available. In this case the Department of State Visa Office will designate the category as "current". This means that an immigrant visa is immediately available allowing you to file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.

Priority Date

The priority date is the date on which the Petition for Immigrant Worker is filed with the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Department of State Visa Office Bulletin

The Department of State Visa Bulletin is updated monthly. For the Visa Bulletin priority dates click here.

Credentialing Required for Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 amended Immigration and Nationality Act Section 212(a)(5)(C) to state that, a foreign nurse seeking to enter the United States as a permanent resident is excludable unless s/he presents in the case of adjustment of status to the Attorney General a certificate from the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS), or, a certificate from an equivalent independent credentialing organization approved by the Attorney General, verifying that her/his education, training, license and experience meet all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements for entry into the United States as a nurse; are comparable with that required for an American nurse; and are authentic and, in the case of a license, unencumbered. Further, the foreign nurse has the level of competence in oral and written English to be appropriate for a nurse as shown by an appropriate score on a nationally recognized, commercially available, standardized assessment of the foreign nurse’s ability to speak and write; and if a majority of the States licensing the nursing profession in which the foreign nurse intends to work recognize a test predicting the success on the nurse licensing or certification examination, the foreign nurse has passed such a test or has passed such an examination.

As noted, CGFNS is recognized in the legislation as an organization that may grant a certificate that satisfies the requirements of Immigration and Nationality Act Section 212(a)(5)(C). As such, CGFNS created a new division, the International Commission on Healthcare Professions (ICHP), which developed the VisaScreen^TM program. The VisaScreen^TM program verifies that your education, training, license and experience meet all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements for entry into the United States as a nurse and are comparable with that required for an American nurse; are authentic and, in the case of a license, unencumbered. The VisaScreen^TM program verifies that you have an adequate level of competence in oral and written English. In order to demonstrate your competency of oral and written English you must pass EITHER the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL ) and Test of Written English (TWE) and Test of Spoken English (TSE); OR the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB) examinations (parts 1-3) and the speaking test. Please note that if your native language is English; you received your education in Australia, Canada (except Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand or the United Kingdom and the language of instruction was English; and the language of the textbooks used was English you may not be required to pass an English proficiency examination. Finally, the VisaScreen^TM program verifies that you have received either a CGFNS Certificate or passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN® examination). Please note that the majority of states require that you receive a CGFNS Certificate before sitting for the NCLEX-RN® examination.

Once the VisaScreen^TM program has verified that you have met all requirements you are granted a VisaScreen^TM Certificate that is that is filed along with the Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.

Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS)

The CGFNS has developed a program that consists of three parts including a review of your education, training, license and experience; an exam that will ensure that you have the level of competence in oral and written English that is considered appropriate for a nurse; and the CGFNS Qualifying Exam. The CGFNS uses the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) to ensure that you have met the English language proficiency requirement. Please note that if your native language is English; you received your nursing education in Australia, Canada (except Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand or the United Kingdom and the language of instruction was English; and the language of the textbooks used was English you may not be required to pass the TOEFL examination. Upon successful completion of all three elements of the program, you will be granted a CGFNS Certificate.

National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX)

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing developed the NCLEX, which was designed to ensure that you would be a safe practicing nurse. In order for you to be licensed to practice in any state in the United States s/he must take and pass the NCLEX.

Filing Requirements

Once you have determined that you may adjust your status you file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; supporting documents; and the filing fee with the Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center, which has jurisdiction over the place where you reside

Immigration and Naturalization Service Processing

Once the Immigration and Naturalization Service receives the Application, it will issue a Notice of Action (Receipt Notice) indicating the date of receipt; date of the notice; your name and address; and the approximate processing time of said Application.

You will receive a second notice (Fingerprint Notice) from the Immigration and Naturalization Service instructing you to appear on a certain date and time in at an Application Support Center in your district to be fingerprinted. If you have any criminal history the Immigration and Naturalization Service will obtain your record.

Once you have been fingerprinted the Immigration and Naturalization Service will proceed in one of two ways:

Approval by the Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center

The Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center will approve the Application. Once the Immigration and Naturalization Service approves the Application, it will issue an Approval Notice instructing you to proceed to the Immigration and Naturalization Service district office where you reside. The Immigration and Naturalization Service district office will issue temporary evidence of lawful permanent residence valid for a one-year period in the form of a stamp in your passport. During this period the Immigration and Naturalization Service will issue and forward to you a permanent resident card valid for ten years.

Approval by the Immigration and Naturalization Service District Office

The Application along with your complete alien file will be transferred to the Immigration and Naturalization Service office in the district where you reside. The Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center will issue a third notice (Transfer Notice) indicating that your file was transferred to the district office. The Immigration and Naturalization Service will issue a fourth notice (Interview Notice) indicating the date of the notice; your name and address; and the date of the permanent residence interview. The interview will be held at the Immigration and Naturalization Service office in the district where you reside. After the interview and once the Application is approved by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, it will issue an Approval Notice and issue temporary evidence or lawful permanent residence in the form of a stamp in your passport valid for a one-year period. During this period the Immigration and Naturalization Service will issue and forward to you a permanent resident card valid for ten years.

Immigration and Naturalization Service Processing Time

The processing time required differs depending on the Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center where the Application is filed. For the Immigration and Naturalization Service Regional Service Center processing times click here.

Dependents

Your spouse and any minor child (less than twenty-one years of age) who meet the eligibility requirements may file an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. A separate Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status is required for each dependent.