Increased Opportunities for International Medical Students

May 11, 2011 — As of April 15, 2011, only 12,200 H-1B petitions have been filed — a much lower number than in years past — indicating that H-1B visas should be available for international medical graduates (IMGs) through March 2012, creating increased opportunities in the United States. H-1B visas are a skilled worker's visa.

Employers "are not able to just offer H-1Bs willy-nilly," a US State Department official told Medscape Medical News. "They have to prove that the foreigner has certain skills that they cannot find in the normal employment pool."

A total of 85,000 H-1B visas are awarded per year to IMGs and other non-US citizens with professional-level credentials. H-1B visas enable IMGs to be employed in the United States for up to 6 years as trainees in their specific field. They are issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, a branch of the US Department of Homeland Security.

Each year, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services accepts new H-1B petitions on April 1 for employment that will begin on or after October 1 of that year. Compared with the 12,200 H-1B visas filed this year, 19,400 were filed by April 15, 2010, and 43,000 petitions were filed by April 17, 2009.

"In past years, when the economy was vibrant, all available H-1B visas were issued during the first week of the filing season," said Carl Shusterman, an immigration attorney who specializes in obtaining visas for health professionals. "Just three years ago, all 85,000 H-1B visas were taken by April 2nd," he noted in a written release.

"Based on the extremely low rate of petitions for H-1B visas filed since April 1st, I project that H-1B visas will be available during the entire fiscal year," he told Medscape Medical News in a telephone interview.

"Once the economy improves and the H-1B cap is again reached within a few days or weeks, the situation for [IMGs] could become quite dismal," Mr. Shusterman added.

According to the American Medical Association, IMGs who seek to continue their training by being employed in a graduate medical education program in the United States cannot file as individuals; instead, the graduate medical education program must file the H-1B petition on the IMG's behalf.

According to the American Medical Association, IMGs make up one fourth of the physician workforce in the United States and more than one quarter of resident physicians. In addition, IMGs are more likely than graduates of US medical schools to serve in medically underserved areas and in primary and critical care.

Carl Shusterman is an immigration attorney who assists employers and employees obtain H-1B visas.

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