The United States Information Agency’s chief lawyer has issued a Statement of Agency Policy setting forth the circumstances under which the USIA will reinstate an exchange visitor unlawfully present in the United States.
The memorandum is a response to recent changes in the law which provide that an alien who has been admitted in nonimmigrant status who remains in the US beyond the period of authorized stay shall have his or her visa considered void beginning after the conclusion of such period of stay. Aliens who remain in the US beyond the period of authorized stay are ineligible for readmission to the US on the previously issued nonimmigrant visa. The alien must have a new visa issued after the overstay violation from a consular office in the alien’s country of nationality, or, where extraordinary circumstances are found to exist, at a consular office outside the alien’s country of nationality. The memo is also relevant because of the new rules barring out of status aliens for becoming legal again for three or ten years if they remain out of status for more than 180 days.
For J visa holders “beyond the period of stay authorized” means 30 days after the alien completes, concludes, ceases, interrupts, graduates from or otherwise terminates his or her course of study or exchange program.
The USIA will permit certain out of status J visa holders to reinstate their legal J-1 status. The alien would have to have fallen out of status due to circumstances beyond the control of the exchange visitor or through administrative oversight, inadvertence, or neglect on the part of a J-1 Exchange Program Responsible Officer or an exchange visitor, or both. Also, the denial of the reinstatement must cause hardship to the exchange visitor. To qualify for a reinstatement, the exchange program responsible officer will need to direct a letter to the Exchange Visitor Program Services Office explaining the violation of status and why it meets the above criteria. The application must also be accompanied by copies of all of the J-1 visa holder’s past IAP-66 forms and the new IAP-66 form valid until the program’s end date. The USIA will then make a decision and if the reinstatement is approved, Box 6 on the new IAP-66 form will be stamped. If the request for reinstatement is denied, the time for which the application was under review will count toward the period of unauthorized status. If it is approved, the alien will be considered to be back in status from the date the application is received by the USIA.
The USIA made a point of noting that failure to maintain health and accident insurance and engaging in unauthorized employment would cause the exchange visitor to be in violation of the J regulations and would subject him or her to termination from the J program. If a person is terminated from the program for one of these reasons, he or she is not eligible for reinstatement.
A formal regulation implementing this policy is expected by July, 1997.
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