Due the shortage of nurses in the United States, nurses seeking immigrant visas (“green cards”) operate under an easier system and get their green cards much faster than many other professions seeking employment in the United States. Registered Nurses (RNs) are treated in a very special way by United States immigration laws. Unlike many of the other employment based immigrant visa categories, the labor certification requirement does not apply to RNs since this profession has already been certified as a “Schedule A” profession by the Department of Labor, which makes the process of obtaining a green card vastly shorter as compared to other professional occupations. “Schedule A” occupations are those for which the Department of Labor has determined there are not sufficient United States workers who are able, willing, qualified and available to work in those practices.

For a foreign nurse to obtain permanent residency through the “Schedule A” category, the applicant must meet the following requirements:

The RN must be in possession of:

a. A diploma from a nursing school in her country;

b. An RN license in her country; and

c. A full and unrestricted license to practice professional nursing in the state of intended employment, or a certification issued by the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS), or evidence that she has passed the NCLEX-RN licensing examination but cannot obtain a license because she lacks a social security number.

Registered Nurses, together with physical therapists, are listed as shortage, or “Schedule A”, occupations in the labor regulations issued by the Department of Labor. An employer who wishes to recruit an RN to the United States is exempt from having to submit a PERM application to the Department of Labor; which as a result saves the employer-applicant a great deal of time and expense.

The process for immigrating the RN begins when an employer submits an immigrant visa petition (Form I-140) to the service center of the Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) having jurisdiction over the nurse’s place of intended employment. The petition must be accompanied by Labor Department form ETA-9089, a prevailing wage determination and with other related documents. The petition will also be accompanied with the appropriate filing fee.

Once approved, the CIS sends the approved visa petition to the National Visa Center (NVC) in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The NVC will then forward a packet to your attorney’s office requesting certain biographical information. These biographical information forms are to be completed by the RN and his/her family members. The packet will also request additional forms/documents to be submitted by the immigrating family members of the RN.

The RN, or her attorney, sends the signed and completed forms and documents to the NVC which then schedules an appointment for an Immigrant Visa for the RN and her family at the U.S. Consulate or Embassy in their home country where they will have their interviews for permanent residence. At this interview, the government will examine various documents including:

a. Applications for Immigrant Visas

b. Police Clearances

c. Birth Certificates

d. Marriage Certificate, if any

e. Divorce or Death Certificate of Spouse, if any

f. Valid Passports

g. Medical Examinations

h. Photographs

i. Recent job offer letter (or employment contract)

j. Financial information regarding employer

k. Government filing fees

l. Visa Screen Certificate

Upon completion of the interview, the RN will receive a letter from the NVC granting authorization to enter into the United States. The entire process from start to completion may take about 12 to 18 months, depending on the backlog with the CIS with respect to other pending nurse applications.