J-1 Initial Application Instructions

• Form A (completed by department)
• Form B (completed by scholar)
• Form C (completed by scholar)
• Form D (if applicable, completed by department)
• 5-Point Statement Letter (if applicable, Form D, section II)
• Copy of passport (biographical page, including dependents')
• Proof of Financial Funding, i.e. scholarship letter, bank statement, etc. (non-UC San Diego support)
• Visiting Graduate Student Appointment Form approved by the Office of Graduate Studies (VGS title only)
• Visiting Scholar Enrollment Form approved by Office of Research Affairs (Visiting Scholar title only)
• Staff Volunteer Appointments require no documentation
• Visa Services Recharge Form
• Copy of immigration documents if currently inside the U.S. (For transfer or change of status)
• UC San Diego Invitation Letter or Employment Offer Letter (approved by appropriate offices)
  • Salaried Appointments (including Postdoctoral Scholar Employees and SRAs): no documentation required
  • Non-Salaried Postdoc Appointments: Approved Postdoctoral Scholar (PS) Re-appointment form
  • Other Academic Appointments: Approved official re-appointment offer letter from Dean's Office
  • Affiliates: Employment offer letter approved by HR office

Form A must be completed by the sponsoring department.

Request Type:

New: For initial request for scholars currently abroad to begin new J-1 program.

Transfer IN: For scholars currently in the U.S. in J-1 status at another institution wishing to transfer to UC San Diego.

Change of Status: For scholars currently in the U.S. in another status (i.e. F-1,etc.) wishing to change to J-1 status.

Section 1: Scholar Information

1. Name: Enter name of scholar as it appears in their passport. Attach a copy of the passport, including amendment pages or extension stamp (if applicable).

Section 2: Program Information

2. Appointment Date: For non-salaried positions, end date should match duration of funding available. For salaried, UCSD appointments, you may use a projected end date if the appointment is likely to be renewed annually. Do not include any dates for personal use, including travel. J scholars are allowed to stay in the U.S. up to 30 days after the end date for personal reasons.

3. Extension: Indicate if there is a possibility of extending the scholar's appointment beyond the current requested date.

4. J-1 Category: 

• Research Scholar: Up to 5 years duration.
• Professor: Up to 5 years for teaching positions only.
• Short-Term Scholar: Up to 6 months duration. Scholars with stay less than 6 months will be given the Short-Term category unless otherwise noted or requested by the department. The 24-Month Bar will apply to the Research Scholar and Professor categories. Please contact ISO for assistance.

5. Payroll or Non-Paid Position Title:  Must select from drop-down list. Do not leave it blank, otherwise it will be returned to the department. Contact your department's Academic Personnel or HR offices for assistance.

6. Title Code:  Enter the appropriate position title code corresponding to the title selected on #5.  Affiliates do not need to enter title code. Leave blank if position does not have a title code (usually non-academic titles without salary).

7. Field of Research:  Indicate the field of research or teaching subject related to their activity at UC San Diego. Keep it general and short, i.e. Biology, Computer Science, Information Technology, etc. This may be different than the field of their degree or the department name.

8. Percent Effort: if appointment is full-time effort, indicate 100%; otherwise, indicate the % effort expected.  Only required for paid titles.

9. Activity: Specify whether the scholar will engage in research or teaching duties at UC San Diego. Select all that apply.

10. Tenure: Indicate if the current appointment is a permanent tenure-track position at UC San Diego. If so, the J-1 is not appropriate; please contact ISO for assistance.

Section 3: Financial Support Information

11. The minimum monthly financial support required for J-1 non-immigrants is as follows:

Single: $1,700
+ 1 dependent $2,300
+ 2 dependents $2,700
+ 3 dependents $3,100
+ 4 dependents $3,500

(Dependents are the scholar's spouse and children)

Proof of funding is required and a full month's funding must be accounted, even if the scholar's stay is less than one full month.

All documentation must be translated to English and the amount must be converted to U.S. dollars (try the XE Currency Site for an online converter).

• UC San Diego-Salary: This includes salary paid from federal grants disbursed through UC San Diego payroll system.
• UC San Diego-Other: Indicate non-salary support from UC San Diego i.e. per diem, reimbursements, etc.
• U.S. Government Agency:  Only if directly paid to the scholar independently from UC San Diego's funds.
• Visitor's Home Government:  Only if directly paid to scholar, such as any governmental agency, ministry or department.
• International Organization:  Only if directly paid to the scholar; for example, NATO, UN, WHO
• Binational Commission:  Only if directly paid to the scholar; for example, Fulbright
• Personal funds:  Attach a recent bank statement in English and converted to U.S. dollars.
• Other:  For example, home country's employer, institute, university, private foundation, including grants not paid directly to scholar. Please specify the name and attach proof of funding.

Section 4: Department Certification

The appropriate signatures are required from the department chair, faculty sponsor, and department administrator. This certifies that the department agrees to the terms and conditions as stated on the form.

For Affiliates: The chief HR officer can sign in place of the department chair.

• ISO will contact the department administrator listed for any questions or when the DS-2019 is ready for pick-up.
• Completing this request form is separate from the appointment enrollment within your department. Please contact your Academic Personnel/HR representative for appointment-related issues.

Program Sponsor Information:

• Department Chair:  This must be signed by the department chair. Contact the departmental Dean's Office or Academic Personnel office for specific procedures.
• Chief HR Officer:  Reserved for Affiliate requests only. Please contact your institution/organization's HR office for signature.
• Sponsor/Supervisor: Signed by the mentor or supervisor.
• Department Contact: ISO will contact the specified department administrator for any additional questions and notification of document pick-up.

12. Health Insurance: Indicate if the UC San Diego sponsoring department will provide for health insurance as part of employee benefits.

13. Site of Activity: If the physical work location is not on UC San Diego Main Campus, please specify the name and address. Include all additional on- or off-campus locations, even if the sites are affiliated with UC San Diego.

Form B must be completed by the prospective scholar.

Upon completing Form B, the scholar should send it directly to the sponsoring department. ISO will not forward the form to the department.

Section 1: Personal Information

1. Name: Enter name as it appears on the passport, separated by Family name, Given name and Middle name.

2. E-Mail: Provide contact email address. Important pre-arrival information will be sent to this email account.

3. Gender: Select gender

4. Date of Birth: Enter in Month, Day,Year (mm/dd/yyyy) format.

5. Marital Status:  Select current marital status.

6. City of Birth:  Do NOT enter province or state. Please provide the city of birth.

7. Country of Birth: Enter country where the scholar was born.

8. Country of Citizenship:  Enter the country which the scholar holds a valid passport. If scholar holds passports from multiple countries, choose the passport country in which the scholar will use to enter the U.S.

9. Country of Legal Permanent Residence:  Enter only the country which the scholar has legal permanent residence and has the intention of residing there permanently. Do not enter the country of temporary or current residence if it is different than the country of citizenship and the scholar does not wish to abandon their home country.

10.  Current/Last Activity in Country of Citizenship and Name of Employer: Specify the scholar's last occupation or activity in their country of citizenship. For example, master's or bachelor's student, research assistant, professor, engineer, medical doctor at a hospital, etc.  Also provide the name of last employer or name of institution if they were a student.

Do not enter current activity outside of country of citizenship. For example, a Japanese scholar currently works in Australia. Before leaving for Australia, he was a Ph.D. student. The correct response to this question would be "Ph.D. student at Kyoto University."

11.  Highest Academic Degree: Indicate the highest degree the scholar already received. The degree must be equivalent to a U.S. degree. Do not enter current degree pursuing or pending approval. Enter the date the degree was awarded.

12.  Medical Degree: Indicate if you currently hold a medical degree such as M.D., O.D., MBBS or MBBCh.

Section 2: Program Information

J-2 status is available for legal spouse and children (under 21 years old), who are not U.S. citizens:

• Passport pages are required for all requested dependents.
• Do not request a DS-2019 form for dependents who are already sponsored in J-2 or have their own independent statuses.
• Family members are allowed to enter the U.S. in other statuses, such as B-1/B-2 or WT/WB.

14. Dependent Travel:  Indicate if J-2 dependent(s) will accompany J-1 scholar to the U.S. at the same time.

15. Separate Travel: Indicate if J-2 dependent(s) will travel separately at a later time, if so, indicate when.

Section 3: U.S. Visa History

16. Labor Certification: Indicate if the scholar has ever received an approval for a labor certification for permanent residence. This is the first step to a U.S. permanent residence application based on employment. If yes, a copy of the receipt or approval notice must be attached.

17. Immigrant Petition:  Indicate if an I-140 (immigrant petition) or I-130 (through marriage/family) has ever been filed for permanent residence in the U.S. If yes, a copy of the receipt or approval notice must be attached.

18. Currently in the U.S.: Indicate if the scholar is currently inside the U.S.  If Yes, answer questions (a) and (b).

(a)  Current Immigration Status: Indicate what is the scholar's current immigration status. If the scholar is currently in the US on a different status (i.e. F-1, B-1, B-2, etc.), include the following:

• Copy of the I-94 card (front and back) including dependents
• Copy of I-20 for F-1 students and any accompanying dependents
• Copy of passport biographical page for scholar and dependents
• Copy of EAD card if applicable
• Copy of I-797 approval notice if applicable

(b):  If YES, select how the scholar will change or continue their status to J-1. Select all that apply:

• Travel: Indicate if there are any travel plans prior to the start date of the program/employment at UC San Diego.
• Transfer: If the scholar is in J-1 status at another US institution and is transferring to UC San Diego, include the following:
  • Copy of I-94 card for scholar and dependents (front and back)
  • Copy of ALL previous DS-2019 documents for scholar and dependents
  • Copy of passport biographical page for scholar and dependents
• Change of Status:  The scholar will file a Change of Status (I-539) application with immigration services (USCIS). The scholar should make an appointment or speak with an ISO advisor to discuss the process as soon as the department is aware that a scholar will need to change status.

19. Previous J status: If the scholar has been in J status within the last 2 years or is currently at another institution, please specify the exact dates and status.  Attach a copy of the last DS-2019, J visa stamp, and I-94 card (if applicable).

a. 212(e): Indicate if the scholar was subject to the Two Year Home Residence requirement (212e) requirement from the previous program.

b. Waiver: Indicate if the scholar has applied for the 212(e) waiver. If so, attach a copy of the Dept. of State recommendation letter or approval notice from USCIS.

Form C must be signed by the prospective scholar.

The completed Form C should be sent directly to the sponsoring department. ISO will not forward the form to the department.

• Indicate what type of insurance coverage the scholar will have during their stay in the U.S.

Form D must be completed by the sponsoring department.

• School of Medicine: The supervisor and department chair must sign Section I or II, then re-route to the School of Medicine Dean's Office for approval. Once approved, forward to ISO along with the completed application package.
• If Section II is selected, the department must include the Five-Point Statement.