How to Maintain your J-1 Status

A lapse in any of the following requirements could invalidate your J-1 status:

Full-time Participation

You must participate in research at your assigned Partners hospital at least 35 hours per week.

Academic Research

Your responsibilities must be consistent with academic research, which consists of hypothesis development, methodology and/or investigation development, hypothesis testing, and analysis of outcomes, and will result in authorship of peer reviewed publications.

You cannot perform responsibilities that are consistent with standard weekly paid positions, such as Research Technician, Research Technologist, Research Coordinator, Research Assistant, or any administrative role.

Sites of Activity

You may only conduct your research at the specific locations your department has filed with the U.S. government. If your work circumstances change, your department must update your SEVIS record before you work at the new location.

Minimum Funding

J-1 visa status requires you to financially support yourself in the U.S. You must have funds sufficient for housing, food, clothing and health insurance for yourself (and for any J-2 family dependents).

A J-1 Exchange Visitor must demonstrate funding at least at the level indicated below before PIPS can issue a J-1 visa eligibility document (DS-2019). Exchange Visitors bringing dependent family members (legally married spouse and children under 21) with them must demonstrate increased amounts of funding due to the additional costs for food, health care, insurance, clothing, etc. associated with additional family members.

• J-1 alone = $35,000/year (prorated to $2,917/month)
• J-1 and one dependent spouse or child = $41,000/year (prorated to $3,417/month)
• J-1 and two dependents = $44,000/year (prorated to $3,667/month)
• J-1, and three dependents = $45,000/year (prorated to $3,750/month)
• additional $1000/year (prorated to an additional $83/month) for each additional dependent

The above are financial requirements for visas. Your hospital may also have additional post-doc policy funding requirements.

Funding Sources

J-1 visa status permits flexible sources of funding. But acceptance of any U.S. federal or state government benefit could be interpreted as a declaration that the J-1 is unable to meet his/her minimum financial obligations. This also applies to parents in J visa status who have children born in the U.S. You should arrive in the U.S. without any expectation of financial help or subsidized services from the U.S. government.

Some apartments, health insurance, childcare services, utility companies, etc. may base their prices on the income earned by a customer. Income-based pricing indicates that the service is subsidized by the U.S. government. These and other services may offer U.S. government financial assistance to a J-1 or J-2 because they are unaware of the visa regulations, or they do not know the visa status of the individuals they are advising.

If your Partners hospital policy permits you to be based solely on personal funds (bank statement), the DS-2019 cannot be issued for more than one year at a time. Personal funds can be used only if the “Minimum Funding Amounts” cannot be satisfied by any of the other funding source options.

Funding Documentation

The U.S. Department of State requires that all funding sources be listed on the visa eligibility documents. The DS-2019 can be issued for only the length of time funding is available.

Scholarships, grants, salary, etc. that are not from the U.S. hospital must be confirmed by an award letter:

• on letterhead
• dated within the past 4 months
• signed by the financial source’s representative
• list the J-1 beneficiary’s name
• state that the beneficiary will be paid while in the U.S.
• state the specific amount the beneficiary will be paid (if a salary range is provided, the average is accepted)
• in U.S. dollars (or be accompanied by a printed currency conversion)
• length of time for which they will be paid
• be in English

Personal funds must be confirmed by a bank statement:

• on letterhead (online bank statements must include the bank's logo)
• dated within the past 4 months
• list the J-1 beneficiary’s name
• verify a specific U.S. dollar amount (or be accompanied by a printed currency conversion)
• be in English
• The bank account must be in the name of the prospective J-1, the prospective J-1’s spouse, or the prospective J-1’s parent(s). Also, a letter must be included from the parents stating that the prospective J-1 is their child and that they are willing to provide at least $31,500/year of the money from the bank account to the prospective J-1.

All documents must be in English or accompanied by English translation. The translation can be done by an official translator or by an "uninterested" person (in other words, the J-1 or a family member cannot provide the translation). The J-1 may ask a coworker, acquaintance, etc. to translate the document and then the translator must write, “I certify that I am competent in (name the language) and English and the attached represents an accurate translation "at the bottom of the translation. The translator must sign, print their name, and date the document. Please note that the translation must be word-for-word and cannot be a summary of the document.

Health Insurance

The U.S. government requires each J-1 Exchange Visitor (and any J-2 family dependents) to maintain compliant medical coverage for the entire lengthy of their DS-2019 validity dates, including evacuation and repatriation insurance. Sponsors are required to terminate J visa status if you knowingly and willingly fail to maintain the insurance required for you and your dependents.

Learn how to get compliant health insurance here.

English Language Proficiency

Be prepared to demonstrate your English proficiency to a U.S. Consulate when you apply for a J-1 Visa. Also be prepared to demonstrate English proficiency at your U.S. hospital. The U.S. Department of State requires you to be able to communicate effectively in English while in the lab and while in the Boston community.