Hello IMGs, I would be really grateful if someone could assist me with my situation: I am a non-US IMG on a J1 visa, currently doing a TY year in the Southwest. I am interviewing mostly for Advanced programs in Diagnostic Radiology, starting in 2025. If I match with those programs, I will have a gap year. Simply put, I will have to leave the state for one year. However, I strongly prefer to stay in the United States for personal reasons. Could anyone who has gone through this or has ideas about it guide me through the possible options to stay in the States during the gap year? Any assistance will be appreciated. Thank you.
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Gap year in-between intern year and Advanced position
Started by mridul
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After your intern year, I believe you will need to exit the US. You should then be able to apply for a B1/B2 visitor visa. They are valid for 6 months, perhaps longer. Also, if you were to enroll in some sort of US based school, you could switch to an F-1 visa. No working visa will be available to you except a J-2 (if you have a spouse on a J-1), an H-4 (if you have a spouse on an H1b, and whether you can work on an H4 is unclear), or an O-1 visa which you won't qualify for. I am not certain whether you would need to return to your country of origin to do all this, or whether you could do it from a 3rd country (like Canada). The visa application process takes some time, so it won't be instant.
Not a lawyer, if you want to make this as smooth as possible you probably should speak to one.
Not a lawyer, if you want to make this as smooth as possible you probably should speak to one.
You absolutely cannot repeat an intern year on a J visa. This is a common error that occurs -- someone completes a prelim GS year then matches into a categorical GS PGY-1, then discovers that theitr J visa will not allow that. The only time you can repeat a PGY year is if your performance is unsatisfactory, or if you switch specialties and repeating is necessary for that. But you can only switch once. You won't qualify for most/any non-accredited fellowships with only a PGY-1, and you don't want to trigger a "switch" or you'll be stuck.
that is a complicated question, I would contact the ECFMG and find out. I expect you would not qualify for a categorical Rads position. It would be very similar to a prelim GS intern matching into a categorical GS position. But there's some chance that because the PGY-1 is not called a "prelim IM" year, it might be OK. It's critical to sort this out before the match, because if the ECFMG declines to sponsor your visa you will lose everything.
From the ECFMG website:
For those interested; I’ve emailed ECFMG and this is their response:
“As you may know, preliminary training was designed as a prerequisite year of training required for specialty programs such as Anesthesiology, Radiology to name a few and requires twelve months of training to receive full credit for participation. Because of this, there is no means to allow repeat of preliminary training. Most importantly, preliminary years should not be used as a look-over year or filler year as Federal Regulations are very clear with respect to minimal pathway, change of specialty and maximum duration of stay. For more detailed information about our program and select Federal Regulations, please refer to the EVSP Reference Guide: https://www.ecfmg.org/evsp/evsprfgd.pdf.”
This thread is 3 years old, but I don't expect much has changed. Even if someone tells you that you can do this, there will be some chance that when you apply you will be denied. tread carefully.
- J-1 physicians are expected to advance through progressive levels of training. Regulations limit ECFMG sponsorship for repeat/remedial training to a maximum of 12 months, based on strong support from the program director.
For those interested; I’ve emailed ECFMG and this is their response:
“As you may know, preliminary training was designed as a prerequisite year of training required for specialty programs such as Anesthesiology, Radiology to name a few and requires twelve months of training to receive full credit for participation. Because of this, there is no means to allow repeat of preliminary training. Most importantly, preliminary years should not be used as a look-over year or filler year as Federal Regulations are very clear with respect to minimal pathway, change of specialty and maximum duration of stay. For more detailed information about our program and select Federal Regulations, please refer to the EVSP Reference Guide: https://www.ecfmg.org/evsp/evsprfgd.pdf.”
This thread is 3 years old, but I don't expect much has changed. Even if someone tells you that you can do this, there will be some chance that when you apply you will be denied. tread carefully.
