United States | State Department updates exchange visa skills list requirements

The State Department announced an update to the Exchange Visitors Skills List, taking effect on Dec. 9, that removes multiple countries subject to the two-year residency requirement, including China and India.

Key Points:

• The Skills List is a list of countries designated by the Secretary of State as clearly requiring the services of persons engaged in certain fields of specialized knowledge or skills.
• The State Department is not updating the Skills List in this revision. For countries present on this revised list, the skills listed remain the same as in the 2009 Skills List.
• J-status nonimmigrant exchange visitors who were subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement at the time of their admission or acquisition of J-status based on designations in a previously published Skills List will no longer be subject to that requirement if their country is not designated in this revised list.
• China and India are among the countries that have been removed from the updated Skills List requirement of designated countries which can be found here.

Additional Information: This list is used by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security to determine whether an individual who has been admitted into the United States on a J-1 nonimmigrant exchange visitor visa is subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement under the amended Immigration and Nationality Act.

The Exchange Visitor Program is a key diplomacy tool that serves as a vehicle for advancing U.S. foreign policy objectives in designated countries whose nationals and residents participate in exchange visitor programs.

The update, which takes effect on Dec. 9, reflects directives outlined in the Biden administration’s Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence issued in 2023 with further guidance provided in a follow-up memorandum released in October.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

Copyright © 2024 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries, please contact copyright@bal.com.