Two-year Home Country
Physical Presence

The Two-Year Home Country Physical Presence Requirement is also called the two-year home residency requirement or 212( e) which refers to the section of U.S. law.

J-1 Exchange visitors subject to the requirement cannot

• change status to another non-immigrant status in the U.S.
• obtain an H temporary worker or L intra-company transferee visa
• obtain permanent residence

until they have spent 2 years in their country of last legal permanent residence or received a waiver of the requirement.

Conditions

You may be subject to the two-year home residency requirement if the following conditions apply:

• Government funded exchange program - The program is financed in whole or in part directly or indirectly by the U.S. government or the government of the exchange visitor's nationality or last residence;
• Graduate medical education or training - The exchange visitor entered the United States to receive graduate medical education or training;
• Specialized knowledge or skill: Skills List - The exchange visitor is a national or permanent resident of a country which has deemed the field of specialized knowledge or skill necessary to the development of the country, as shown on the Exchange Visitor Skills List. Review the Exchange Visitor Skills List 2009.

To see if the consular officer preliminarily determined that you are subject to Section 212(e), refer to the visa stamp placed in your passport by the U.S. Consular Officer and the officer’s endorsement on your Form DS-2019.

If you believe the determination is not correct, you can request an advisory opinion from the U.S. Exchange Visitor Program.

Extensions of the J-1 Program/Form DS-2019

If you are subject to Section 212(e) and you are recommended for a waiver by the Department of State and granted a waiver by the Department of Homeland Security, you cannot extend J status, transfer to another program, or obtain a new J visa without the possibility of becoming subject to Section 212(e) again.

Waivers

Find additional information about the requirement and waivers at the U.S. Department of States’ Waiver Review website.

UC Denver does not assist students or scholars with their individual requests to waive the two-year home residency requirement. Schools, Colleges or Departments are not obligated to pay any fees incurred by an individual who requests an individual waiver. Under limited circumstances, ISSS may provide general guidance to an individual scholar about filing a request.

In the case of a tenure-eligible, tenure-track, or tenured faculty member and at the request of the hiring unit, The University of Colorado Denver | Anschutz Medical Campus will sometimes sponsor a J-1 waiver that requires the support of the employer, such as an Interested Government Agency waiver or State of Colorado Conrad 30 waiver. The application requires that the University engage and either the hiring unit or the faculty member pay for the services of an outside attorney authorized to represent the University in the matter.