Maintaining J-1 Status

J-1 Exchange Visitors are allowed an additional 30-day grace period after their DS-2019 expires to prepare for their departure from the U.S. During this grace period, employment or study is not allowed. Upon departure of the U.S. within these 30 days, the J Visa status automatically expires and you will not be able to re-enter the country to reclaim the rest of your grace period time.

In compliance with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Exchange Visitors are required to have a valid address, email, and phone number during their studies/research in the U.S. DHS may terminate the EV's immigration status automatically if they do not maintain their information with UCLA. Information must be updated with the DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office within 10 days after change.

To update your information, please submit the DGSOM Address and Contact Information Update eForm through MyBruin International.

The U.S. Code of Federal Regulations governing Exchange Visitor Programs (22CFR514.14) require that the EV and his/her dependent(s) obtain health, accident, medical evacuation and repatriation of remains insurance. A qualifying insurance policy MUST provide:

• medical benefits of at least $100,000 per accident or illness
• repatriation of remains in the amount of $25,000
• expenses associated with the medical evacuation of the exchange visitor to his or her home country in the amount of $50,000
• a deductible not to exceed $500 per accident or illness

J-1 Exchange Visitors at UCLA are required to follow procedures for 1 of the 3 health insurance options listed below depending on their UCLA appointment title. If you are not sure of which category you fall into, please contact your department for clarification.

1. Postdoctoral Scholar Benefit Plan (PSBP) 
   Postdoctoral Scholars are required to enroll in the Postdoctoral Scholar Benefits Plan (PSBP). Information regarding eligibility, requirements, and enrollment process can be found on the Gallagher site. Your UCLA academic department will assist you with enrollment when you arrive as part of the hiring process.

2. UCLA Employee Medical Benefits 
   If you are a UCLA employee, you may be eligible for medical benefits. Your UCLA academic department will assist you with enrollment when you arrive as part of the hiring process. Medical benefits coverage for UCLA employees does not include the following:

   • repatriation of remains in the amount of $25,000
   • expenses associated with the medical evacuation of the exchange visitor to his or her home country in the amount of $50,000

   Medical evacuation and repatriation of remains coverage may be purchased separately through BETiNS to fulfill the J-1 visa requirements.
    
   The UC CORE plan and the UC Health Savings plan does not meet the J-1 visa requirements due to the deductible amount.
    

3. Visiting Scholar Insurance Plans
   In addition to meeting federal regulations, all exchange visitors are also required to meet the appropriate campus or institutions’ medical insurance requirements. All J-1 exchange visitors appointed through UCLA Graduate are required to enrolling the Visiting Scholar Injury and Sickness Insurance Plan (VSISP) through Garnett-Powers & Associates. Information regarding eligibility, requirements, enrollment and the waiver approval process can be found on the UCLA Graduate Division website as well as on the Garnett-Powers site.

Exchange Visitor (J-1) programs must be predominantly in-person.  The U.S. Department of State defines predominantly as 60% in-person. Exchange visitors may participate remotely no more than 40% of their program when the host department has instituted partial remote policies and their faculty supervisor has approved their hybrid program participation. For example, if the visitor is invited to do research 5 days a week, then only 2 of the 5 days may be conducted remotely or by tele-work. The rest of the time will require in-person presence at the site(s) of activity.

U.S. Department of State Guidelines on Remote Policies

Visiting Professors/Researchers/Short-Term Scholars on J-1 visa status at UCLA are authorized to receive compensation or salaries from UCLA for employment when such activities are part of their program. Any activity that that involves remuneration of any kind from an institution outside of UCLA must be authorized by the DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office in writing before the activity takes place.

According to U.S Department of State regulations, off-campus employment for monetary remuneration of Visiting Scholars/Professors is limited to:

• Occasional lectures
• Short-term Consultations
• Short-term activities (e.g. conference participation, meetings) involving travel reimbursement: Receiving travel reimbursement is also treated as a form of employment.

The employment must meet the following criteria:

• Be directly related to the objectives of the exchange visitor's program.
• Be incidental to the exchange visitor's primary program activities.
• Not delay the completion date of the exchange visitor's program.

Employment can only be authorized up to 3 months at one time.

Acceptance of employment with an organization or institution other than UCLA without prior written authorization from the DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office is a violation of the EV's visa status and is grounds for terminating a visitor's participation in the exchange visitor program.

Procedures for Authorization

To apply for permission to engage in off-campus scholar employment, you must submit the DGSOM J-1 Site of Activity Request Form through the MyBruin International Portal at least 10 business days before the activity takes place.

The form will ask you to upload the following two documents:

• Letter from the prospective employer setting forth the terms and conditions of the offer including its duration, number of hours, field or subject, amount of compensation, and description of such activity. There is no limitation as to the maximum or minimum amount of compensation the exchange visitor may receive.
• Letter from the Department Chair or Faculty Supervisor explaining how the activity would enhance your program and that it will not interfere with the activities at UCLA.

If consistent with the purpose and objectives of the exchange visitor's program, the DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office will prepare the required written authorization and add the employer site to your SEVIS record. Processing time is 10 business days. You will be emailed once the authorization letter is prepared.

J-1 Scholars who finish their program more than 15 days before to the program end date on the DS-2019 must notify their respective host department coordinators immediately, who will then submit the DGSOM J-1 Early Program Completion Request eForm through the MyBruin International Portal. 

Upon receiving the eForm request, the Visa and Licensing Office will report the earlier end date in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). If we are notified about the early completion before the Scholar ceases program activities, the Visa and Licensing Office will be able to update SEVIS and the Scholar will receive the 30-day grace period from the new end date of the shortened program. During this grace period, employment or study is not allowed. Upon departure of the U.S. within these 30 days, the J Visa status automatically expires and you will not be able to re-enter the country to reclaim the rest of your grace period time.

Exchange Visitors are required to report all locations (on or off campus) where program activity is taking place even if payment is not involved. Examples of activities include:

• Field Work
• Visiting research institutions
• Visiting organizations
• Conferences
• Workshops
• Meetings
• Working at another UCLA department

The activity taking place at these locations must be directly related to the objectives of your program, be incidental to your primary program activities, not delay the completion date of your program, and must be approved by your UCLA faculty supervisor (PI).

You can report your new site of activity by submitting the DGSOM Site of Activity Request eForm through MyBruin International.

The eForm will ask you to upload a letter from your UCLA Faculty Supervisor (on UCLA Letterhead). The letter should explain how the activity would enhance your program and verify that it will not interfere with your primary program objectives.

Exchange Visitors need the following documents to enter the U.S.:

• Valid passport
• Valid J-1 visa stamp (except for Canadians or when returning from Mexico, Canada or adjacent islands after a trip lasting no longer than 30 days*)
• Valid paper DS-2019 form with a travel validation signature to re-enter the U.S. after a trip abroad

Travel validation signature is valid for 1 year and accommodates multiple trips within the 1 year. In order to obtain a travel validation signature, the Exchange Visitor must fill out the DGSOM Travel Authorization Request eForm through MyBruin International.

The DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office will email you an updated DS-2019 form with travel signature.

*Automatic Visa Revalidation allows J-1 holders to enter the U.S. from Canada, Mexico, or one of the adjacent islands to the U.S. (other than Cuba) on an expired J-1 visa if the trip is not exceeding 30 days. If you meet one of the following criteria, you will NOT be able to use the automatic revalidation rule.

• You applied for a new J-1 visa while being out of the U.S. and it has not been issued.
• You applied for a new J-1 visa and were denied.
• You have a terminated or completed SEVIS record.
• You have been out of the U.S. for more than 30 days.
• You are a citizen from one of the following countries: Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Syria, North Korea

If you plan to be outside of the U.S. for more than 3 months at one time, then you will need to submit the DGSOM Out-of-Country Request eForm through MyBruin International.

Scholars that are receiving travel reimbursements from non-UCLA institutions in the U.S. must obtain written authorization from the DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office prior to participating in the activity. 

The DGSOM Visa and Licensing Office can only authorize activity related to the scholar’s primary program objectives. To obtain authorization, you must follow the same procedures for Off-Campus Scholar Employment.

All J-1 exchange visitors must maintain a valid passport at all times. Your passport must always be valid for at least 6 months into the future.

An Out-of-Country status is only available for J-1 Research Scholars and Professors. Such status must be placed on your SEVIS record if you will be outside of the U.S. for more than one academic quarter (3 months). You may qualify for Out-of-Country status only if you and the UCLA collaborators will continue the research activities during this absence and you will maintain your UCLA appointment.

Submit the request form through the MyBruin International Portal. and upload a letter from your Faculty Supervisor on UCLA letterhead explaining the purpose of your time abroad. Processing time is 10 business days. You will be notified by email when the Out-of-Country status has been approved and processed in SEVIS.