EXCHANGE VISITORS

Interview for Your U.S. Exchange Visitor's Visa Three Months Before Your Program Starts!

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing is urging all students and exchange visitors planning to study or do research in the U.S. to appear for their visa interviews three months before their programs start.   Interest in studying in the United States continues to grow and record numbers of students are applying for visas.  Student and exchange visitor visas can take up to three months to process.    >>More

The J exchange visitor program is designed to promote the interchange of persons, knowledge, and skills in the fields of education, arts, and sciences. Participants include students at all academic levels; trainees obtaining on-the-job training with firms, institutions, and agencies; teachers of primary, secondary, and specialized schools; professors coming to teach or do research at institutions of higher learning; research scholars; professional trainees in the medical and allied fields; and international visitors coming for the purpose of travel, observation, consultation, research, training, sharing, or demonstrating specialized knowledge or skills, or participating in organized people-to-people programs.

J1 and J2 visitors may be issued visas at any time before the beginning of their programs.  The Embassy recommends that J applicants apply for their visas as early as possible to leave ample time for the necessary visa processing.  However, exchange visitors may not enter the United States earlier than 30 days before the initial program start date.  Applicants continuing on an exchange visitors program are not subject to this restriction.

All J applicants should prepare to present the following documentation and any other relevant information at the time of the interview:

1. Valid Passport: If your passport will expire less than 6 months from your planned arrival in the United States, is damaged, or you do not have a page for a visa, please get a new passport before your interview.
   
   
2. One Photograph: Two inches square color photograph, less than 6 months old, against a white background, full frontal view. The photo should be glued to the English DS-156, Nonimmigrant Visa Application Form.  Click for more information on photo requirements.
   
   
3. Original Bank Receipt for Application Fee: The 904 RMB (effective Thursday, July 24, 2008) application fee may be paid at any CITIC Bank branch in China. Nonimmigrant visa applicants are required to tape their application fee receipt on the last page of the completed and printed out DS-156 Electronic Visa Application Form. Please do NOT cover the barcode area, and please do NOT staple or glue your receipt.
   
   
4. Completed Visa Application Forms: DS-156, DS-157 & DS-158.
   
   
5. Completed DS-2019 Form: Name on form must exactly match the name in your passport and has been entered into the SEVIS system by the U.S. academic institution. Click for more information on SEVIS.
   
   
6. SEVIS Fee Receipt: Most J, F, and M applicants must now pay a SEVIS fee. Please bring an electronic receipt or I-797 receipt to your interview. Click for information on how to pay the SEVIS fee.
   
   
7. Proof of Ties to China: Proof of economic, social, family, or other commitments that will help demonstrate your intent to return to China after a temporary stay in the U.S.
   
   
8. Proof of Finances: Proof that you can support yourself during your entire stay in the U.S. without working.
   
   
9. Research/Study Plan: Detailed information about your planned studies or research in the U.S. including the name and e-mail address of your advising professor and/or the head of your department in the U.S.
   
   
10. Resume/CV: Detailed information about your past academic and professional experience, including a complete list of all publications to which you have contributed.
    
    

11. Advisor Biography: Graduate students who have already been assigned an advising professor at their U.S. university should bring a copy of the advisor's biography, CV or webpage.

    
    

Special Requirements for J’s

Scholastic Preparation: J exchange visitors must have sufficient scholastic preparation and knowledge of English to enable a full course of study in the place of study at which the applicant has been accepted. If the applicant's knowledge of English is inadequate, documentation must be submitted demonstrating that special arrangements have been made for English language tutoring.

Medical Education and Training: Exchange visitors coming under the J program for graduate medical education/training must meet certain special requirements. These applicants must pass the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination in Medical Sciences and demonstrate competency in English. They are also automatically subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement upon completion of their program, and are subject to time limits on the duration of their program. Physicians coming to the U.S. on exchange visitor programs for the purpose of observation, consultation, teaching, or research in which there is little or no patient care are not subject to the above requirements.

The above items should not be considered an exhaustive list and presentation of these documents does not guarantee visa issuance.  Be prepared to explain to the visa officer and present evidence regarding why you are going to the US and why you will return to China.