CASE: J-1 Waiver of the Two-Year Foreign Residency Requirement, Extreme Hardship
NATIONALITY: Filipina
LOCATION: Goose Creek, SC
Our client, a native and citizen of the Philippines, entered the U.S. as a J-1 teacher. However, her J-1 status made her subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement. While she wished to file an Adjustment of Status application based on an I-130 petition filed by her U.S. citizen spouse, she was required to obtain a waiver of the two-year requirement first.
Unlike many of our other J-1 clients, she was unable to pursue a waiver based on a No Objection Statement or Interested Government Agency (IGA) recommendation; her case rendered those routes virtually impossible. Instead, she sought a J-1 waiver based on the exceptional hardship standard, as her U.S. citizen spouse suffers from severe medical conditions.
Under 8 C.F.R. § 212.7(c)(5), “an alien who is subject to the foreign residence requirement and who believes that compliance therewith would impose exceptional hardship upon her spouse or child who is a citizen of the United States… may apply for a waiver on Form I-612.”
Factors considered in analyzing exceptional hardship include the alien’s age, family ties in the U.S. and abroad, length of U.S. residence, medical conditions, economic and political conditions in the country of return, financial status, business and occupational ties, and community involvement. Matter of Anderson, 16 I&N Dec. 596 (BIA 1978).
After being retained, our firm prepared and filed a waiver request based on exceptional hardship. On October 31, 2024, we filed the J-1 Waiver Application (Form DS-3035) with the Department of State. Thereafter, our office prepared our client’s affidavit, a comprehensive legal brief, and extensive supporting documentation, including detailed medical records and physician reports regarding her spouse’s health conditions. On November 4, 2024, we filed the Form I-612 application with USCIS, arguing that her spouse would suffer exceptional hardship if she were required to return to the Philippines for two years.
On March 9, 2026, USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE) seeking additional documentation of hardship to her husband. Our office prepared and submitted a robust RFE response on May 18, 2026. Ultimately, USCIS approved her I-612 waiver on October 30, 2026.