[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 22, Volume 1]
[Revised as of April 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 22CFR62.27]

[Page 287-289]
 
                       TITLE 22--FOREIGN RELATIONS
 
                     CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF STATE
 
PART 62_EXCHANGE VISITOR PROGRAM--Table of Contents
 
                  Subpart B_Specific Program Provisions
 
Sec.  62.27  Alien physicians.

    (a) Purpose. Pursuant to the Mutual Educational and Cultural 
Exchange Act, as amended by the Health Care Professions Act, Public Law 
94-484, the Department of State facilitates exchanges for foreign 
medical graduates seeking to pursue graduate medical education or 
training at accredited schools of medicine or scientific institutions. 
The Department of State also facilitates exchanges of foreign medical 
graduates seeking to pursue programs involving observation, 
consultation, teaching, or research activities.
    (b) Clinical exchange programs. The Educational Commission for 
Foreign Medical Graduates must sponsor alien physicians who wish to 
pursue programs of graduate medical education or training conducted by 
accredited U.S. schools of medicine or scientific institutions. Such 
Foreign Medical Graduates shall:
    (1) Have adequate prior education and training to participate 
satisfactorily in the program for which they are coming to the United 
States;
    (2) Be able to adapt to the educational and cultural environment in 
which they will be receiving their education or training;
    (3) Have the background, needs, and experiences suitable to the 
program as required in Sec.  62.10(a)(1);
    (4) Have competency in oral and written English;
    (5) Have passed either Parts I and II of the National Board of 
Medical Examiners Examination, the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination 
in the Medical Sciences, the United States Medical Licensing 
Examination, Step I and Step II, or the Visa Qualifying Examination 
(VQE) prepared by the National Board of Medical Examiners, administered 
by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates. [NB--
Graduates of a school of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on 
Medical Education are exempted by law from the requirement of passing 
either Parts I and II of the National Board of Medical Examiners 
Examination or the Visa Qualifying Examination (VQE)]; and
    (6) Provide a statement of need from the government of the country 
of their nationality or last legal permanent residence. Such statement 
must provide written assurance, satisfactory to the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services, that there is a need in that country for persons 
with the skills the alien physician seeks to acquire and shall be 
submitted to the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates by 
the participant's government. The statement of need must bear the seal 
of the concerned government and be signed by a duly designated official 
of the government. The text of such statement of need shall read as 
follows:

    Name of applicant for Visa: ------. There currently exists in 
(Country) a need for qualified medical practitioners in the speciality 
of ------. (Name of applicant for Visa) has filed a written assurance 
with the government of this country that he/she will return to this 
country upon completion of training in the United States and intends to 
enter the practice of medicine in the specialty for which training is 
being sought. Stamp (or Seal and signature) of issuing official of named 
country.
Dated:__________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Official of Named Country.

    (7) Submit an agreement or contract from a U.S. accredited medical 
school, an affiliated hospital, or a scientific institution to provide 
the accredited

[[Page 288]]

graduate medical education. The agreement or contract must be signed by 
both the alien physician and the official responsible for the training.
    (c) Non-clinical exchange programs. (1) A United States university 
or academic medical center which has been designated an exchange visitor 
program by the Secretary of State of the Department of State is 
authorized to issue From DS-2019 to alien physicians to enable them to 
come to the United States for the purposes of observation, consultation, 
teaching, or research if:
    (i) The responsible officer or duly designated alternate of the 
exchange visitor program involved signs and appends to the Form DS-2019 
a certification which states ``this certifies that the program in which 
(name of physician) is to be engaged is solely for the purpose of 
observation, consultation, teaching, or research and that no element of 
patient care is involved'' or
    (ii) The dean of the involved accredited United States medical 
school or his or her designee certifies to the following five points and 
such certification is appended to the Form DS-2019 issued to the 
perspective exchange visitor alien physician:
    (A) The program in which (name of physician) will participate is 
predominantly involved with observation, consultation, teaching, or 
research.
    (B) Any incidental patient contact involving the alien physician 
will be under the direct supervision of a physician who is a U.S. 
citizen or resident alien and who is licensed to practice medicine in 
the State of ------.
    (C) The alien physician will not be given final responsibility for 
the diagnosis and treatment of patients.
    (D) Any activities of the alien physician will conform fully with 
the State licensing requirements and regulations for medical and health 
care professionals in the State in which the alien physician is pursuing 
the program.
    (E) Any experience gained in this program will not be creditable 
towards any clinical requirements for medical specialty board 
certification.
    (2) The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates may 
also issue Form DS-2019 to alien physicians who are coming to the United 
States to participate in a program of observation, consultation, 
teaching, or research provided the required letter of certification as 
outlined in this paragraph is appended to the Form DS-2019.
    (d) Public health and preventive medicine programs. A United States 
university, academic medical center, school of public health, or other 
public health institution which has been designated as an exchange 
visitor program sponsor by the Secretary of State of the Department of 
State is authorized to issue Forms DS-2019 to alien physicians to enable 
them to come to the United States for the purpose of entering into those 
programs which do not include any clinical activities involving direct 
patient care. Under these circumstances, the special eligibility 
requirements listed in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section need not 
be met. The responsible officer or alternate responsible officer of the 
exchange visitor program involved shall append a certification to the 
Form DS-2019 which states.

    This certifies that the program in which (name of physician) is to 
be engaged does not include any clinical activities involving direct 
patient care.

    (e) Duration of participation. (1) The duration of an alien 
physician's participation in a program of graduate medical education or 
training as described in paragraph (b) of this section is limited to the 
time typically required to complete such program. Duration shall be 
determined by the Secretary of State of the Department of State at the 
time of the alien physician's entry into the United States. Such 
determination shall be based on criteria established in coordination 
with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and which take into 
consideration the requirements of the various medical specialty boards 
as evidenced in the Director of Medical Specialties published by Marquis 
Who's Who for the American Board of Medical Specialties.
    (2) Duration of participation is limited to seven years unless the 
alien physician has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Secretary of 
State that the country to which the alien physician will return at the 
end of additional specialty education or training

[[Page 289]]

has an exceptional need for an individual with such additional 
qualification.
    (3) Subject to the limitations set forth above, duration of 
participation may, for good cause shown, be extended beyond the period 
of actual training or education to include the time necessary to take an 
examination required for certification by a specialty board.
    (4) The Secretary of State may include within the duration of 
participation a period of supervised medical practice in the United 
States if such practice is an eligibility requirement for certification 
by a specialty board.
    (i) Alien physicians shall be permitted to undertake graduate 
medical education or training in a specialty or subspecialty program 
whose board requirements are not published in the Director of Medical 
Specialists if the Board requirements are certified to the Secretary of 
State and to the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates by 
the Executive Secretary of the cognizant component board of the American 
Board of Medical Specialties.
    (ii) The Secretary of State may, for good cause shown, grant an 
extension of the program to permit an alien physician to repeat one year 
of clinical medical training.
    (5) The alien physician must furnish the Attorney General each year 
with an affidavit (Form I-644) that attests the alien physician:
    (i) Is in good standing in the program of graduate medical education 
or training in which the alien physician is participating; and
    (ii) Will return to the country of his nationality or last legal 
permanent resident upon completion of the education or training for 
which he came to the United States.
    (f) Change of program. The alien physician may, once and not later 
than two years after the date the alien physician enters the United 
States as an exchange visitor or acquires exchange visitor status, 
change his designated program of graduate medical education or training 
if the Secretary of State approves the change and if the requirements of 
paragraphs (b) and (e) of this section are met for the newly designated 
specialty.
    (g) Applicability of section 212(e) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act. (1) Any exchange visitor physician coming to the United 
States on or after January 10, 1977 for the purpose of receiving 
graduate medical education or training is automatically subject to the 
two-year home-country physical presence requirement of section 212(e) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended. Such physicians are not 
eligible to be considered for section 212(e) waivers on the basis of 
``No Objection'' statements issued by their governments.
    (2) Alien physicians coming to the United States for the purpose of 
observation, consultation, teaching, or research are not automatically 
subject to the two-year home-country physical presence requirement of 
section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, but 
may be subject to this requirement if they are governmentally financed 
or pursuing a field of study set forth on their countries' Exchange 
Visitor Skills List. Such alien physicians are eligible for 
consideration of waivers under section 212(e) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act, as amended, on the basis of ``No Objection'' statements 
submitted by their governments in their behalf through diplomatic 
channels to the Secretary of State of the Department of State.

[58 FR 15196, Mar. 19, 1993; 58 FR 48448, Sept. 16, 1993. Redesignated 
at 64 FR 54539, Oct. 7, 1999]