The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has indicated additional temporary flexibilities around the issuance of the home country Statement of Need (SON) for physicians seeking J-1 visa sponsorship during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. ECFMG sought and received temporary authorization to accept SONs issued by foreign embassies in the United States, if authorized by the respective … Read More

President Trump issued a new Executive Order (EO) on April 22, 2020 temporarily suspending the issuance of immigrant visas. Non-immigrant visa classifications, such as the J-1, are not included in the EO and are, therefore, exempt from the provisions of the order. As previously reported, the U.S. Department of State has advised that physicians and … Read More

Over the past three weeks, ECFMG|FAIMER staff have been in daily communication with officials at the U.S. Department of State (DOS) to communicate specific concerns related to COVID-19 and foreign national physicians participating in, or seeking to participate in, U.S. residency and fellowship training programs. These communications directly resulted in the following developments: Working in partnership … Read More

ECFMG|FAIMER Continues Focus on Obstacles to IMGs Entering U.S. Training In a communication today, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) signaled that it would resume processing of J and H visa applications for medical professionals seeking to enter the United States. In its communication, DOS encouraged individuals with an approved U.S. non-immigrant or immigrant visa … Read More

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has published resources to support residency applicants in making strategic decisions regarding specialty and residency program selection. AAMC’s Apply Smart: Data to Consider When Applying to Residency includes information on specialty entrance rates based on applicant type and USMLE Step 1 score. This data may help applicants better … Read More