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Archive for category: Hardship Waivers

I-612 Approval Notice for Egyptian with Government Financing on a J-1 Visa

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I-612 hardship Waiver Approval notice for client from Egypt

I-612 Hardship Waiver Approval Notice

The Timeline of this I-612 Form Application and J-1 Waiver Approval

  • Date of application to wave the foreign residence requirements: October 28, 2019
  • Date The Department of State received Form I-612 from USCIS: April 07, 2020
  • Department of State issued a favorable recommendation on: October 06, 2020
  • Date USCIS issued the approval notice: October 22, 2020

I-612 is an application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement under Section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as Amended. J-1 and J-2 visa holders and their families may use this form to apply for a waiver of the two-year foreign residence requirement.

If you are applying for a waiver of the foreign residence requirement because your departure from the United States would impose exceptional hardship on your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or child you need to provide the following formal documentation:

  • Evidence of your spouse’s or child’s U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent resident status;
  • Evidence of the relationship between you and your spouse or child;
  • Evidence of legal termination of all prior marriages for you and your spouse (if applicable).

Along with these documents you will need to produce enough convincing evidence that your departure and two-year permanence in your country of origin would in fact inflict exceptional hardship on the U.S. members of your family.

The Facts about this success story behind this I-612 Hardship Waiver Approval

Like many of our success stories and J-1 Waiver approvals, this was a successful case based on exceptional hardship to wave the two-year foreign residence requirement. In this particular case, our immigration attorneys successfully proved exceptional hardship to the client’s three American children.

The client’s spouse is a resident of the United States on a J-2 Visa who is also subject to home residency requirements. A denial of this waiver would inherently mean that the family would have to return to Egypt for two years.

For this reason, we focused our arguments and were able to successfully prove extreme hardship based on overall country conditions.

A J-1 Hardship Waiver success story for Client from Venezuela

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I-612 Approval Notice (Letter of approval) - The Ranchod Law Group, Sacramento CA

I-612 Letter of Approval (Form I-797, Notice of Action)

Timeline of this J-1 Waiver

  • Date the I-612 Application to wave the foreign residence requirements was filed: March 2, 2020
  • Department of State received I-613 from USCIS on May 13, 2020
  • A favorable recommendation was issued by the Department of State on September 23, 2020
  • USCIS issued a letter of approval for this I-612 application to wave foreign residence requirements on September 29, 2020

J-1 Hardship Waiver Approval for Venezuelan Client

This is another success story for a Client from Venezuela who approached The Ranchod Law Group seeking advice on successfully tackling his situation. The Client, on a J-1 Visa, spoke to the immigration attorneys at our offices and explained his needs and objectives, which are typical to many professionals on a J-1 Visa.

The need to Waive the Two Year Foreign Residence Requirement

During a preliminary brief, we answered all the Client’s questions like:

  1. Does the home-country physical presence requirement apply to me?
  2. Which are the implications of this requirement?
  3. Which is the exact procedure, and how should an I-612 application be handled considering the implications and the costs?

Every J-1 Waiver case is unique and requires close consideration of many elements to identify situations and scenarios which can constitute grounds to request a waiver. Here at the Ranchod Law Group, we build your case based on your personal situation and circumstances.

How we won this case

The Immigration attorneys at our practice studied the brief and identified circumstances and facts which could be used to argue in favor of a waiver of the foreign residence requirements. A crucial factor was the health of the Client’s American child. During the interview, we discovered that the Client’s child was receiving developmental therapy. This is a factor we could use to argue exceptional hardship to the client’s American child because this kind of treatment is not readily available in Venezuela.  We also researched and argued at length the exceptional hardship inherent in the country’s conditions in general. The facts we presented were enough for the Department of State to issue a favorable recommendation in September of this year and for USCIS to issue a letter of approval for this I-612 application.

J-1 Hardship Waiver Success Story with I-612 Letter of Approval for Doctor from Jordan

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I-612 Letter of approval: Application to waive foreign residence requirement.

J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval (I-612 Application)

J-1 Hardship Waiver Approval for Doctor from Jordan

Date we filed Form I-612 for this Client: April 1, 2019.

– Department of State received Form I-612 from USCIS on December 09, 2019.

– The Department of State issued a favorable recommendation with I-612 Letter of Approval on September 29, 2020.

A brief description of the I-612 process and

Form I-612 is an application seeking to obtain a waiver to waive The Foreign Residence Requirement. Section 212(e) specifies The Foreign Residence Requirement of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Holders of a J-1 Visa or a J-2 visa may apply for a waiver to waive The Foreign Residence Requirement. Family members of J1 and J-2 Visa holders may also apply using Form I-612.

Individuals with a J-1 and J-2 Visa who are nonimmigrants may complete this application. Form I-612 is a request to waive the two-year foreign residence requirement. The foreign residence requirement applies to all exchange visitors, who are subject to the requirement mentioned above if they participated in a foreign exchange program and:

  1. an agency of the U.S. Government (or the government of their country of citizenship or nationality or last foreign residence) financed their participation;
  2. the U.S. designated the country as clearly requiring their specialized knowledge or skill. Designation includes not only country of citizenship but also nationality or foreign residence;
  3. the Secretary of State must have designated the country. Designation must happen before admittance as an exchange visitor or acquiring such status after admission;
  4. they gained admission as an exchange visitor or acquired such status after admission on or after January 10, 1977;
  5. As an exchange visitor, they participated in graduate medical education or training.

This J-1 Hardship Waiver Success Story

The Client of this success story by The Ranchod Law Group contacted our practice seeking advice on her/his particular situation. Our team of Immigration attorneys in Sacramento worked with the Client to document the case. We used our proprietary process to create supporting documentation for Form I-612.

Our Client married a U.S. Citizen with a history of mental health issues. We described two distinct scenarios and explained how both would exacerbate pre-existing medical conditions.

The history of mental health issues would subject the spouse to exceptional hardship

The case we presented highlighted how this would undoubtedly occur should she/he accompany the Client to Jordan. On the other hand, remaining in the U.S. without the Client would also cause exceptional hardship. The spouse, having to stay alone in the U.S., was another scenario that would have caused exceptional hardship.

Also, we described and documented how the Client’s spouse is financially dependent on the Client.

Finally, we went through a thorough analysis of the country conditions in Jordan. Our brief identified how permanence in that country would impose exceptional hardship on the American spouse for two years.

I-612 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval and Success Story for Client from Egypt

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I-612 letter of approval notice, application to wave foreign residence requirements

J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval for Egyptian with Government Financing

This I-612 Hardship Waiver was Filed: May 23, 2019

  • Date Department Of State (DOS) received Form I-613 from USCIS on: February 12, 2020
  • Date DOS issued a favorable recommendation: September 29, 2020

We are happy to share this recent success story with the I-612 hardship waiver letter of approval for a client with three U.S. citizen children.

The I-612 Hardship Waiver Application Process

The Application for Waiver of the Foreign Residence Requirement (Under Section 212(e) of the INA, as Amended) should be based on one of the following scenarios:

  1. Departure from the United States would impose exceptional hardship on U.S. citizen members of your family (this includes lawful permanent resident spouse or children.
  2. Return to your home country of citizenship or nationality or last foreign residence would subject you to persecution based on race, religion, or political opinion.

In the case of exceptional hardship, the applicant must attach a statement providing a detailed explanation of why you believe that your compliance with the two-year foreign residence requirement of INA section 212(e) would impose exceptional hardship on your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or children. But stating your case and personal circumstances is not enough to win an I-612 hardship waiver approval. In fact, you must attach any available evidence that supports your claims of hardship, including all pertinent financial information regarding your and your spouse’s income and savings.

The facts of this case we were able to prove

In the past, the client’s children have needed medical care for both minor and more serious medical issues. Our Immigration attorneys successfully argued, on the client’s behalf, that per the U.S. Department of State Consulate Information Sheet for Egypt, medical care is limited and well below U.S. standards.

Thanks to our experience and numerous other exceptional hardship cases we have dealt with over the years, we also argued that the client and his wife could not provide for the children’s necessities in Egypt due to meager income and high living costs.

Other factors contributing to hardship inherent in the country conditions in this specific case included:

  • the language barrier;
  • crime;
  • risk of terrorism.

The client’s wife was on a J-2 Visa and subject to the home residency requirement.

Here at the Ranchod Law Group, we are so happy this brilliant couple can continue their lives in the U.S.

I-612 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval & Success Story

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J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval (Government Funding, Dominican Republic)




J-1 Hardship Waiver Approved with Government Funding from the Dominican Republic

  • Case filed: June 30, 2019
  • Case approved: June 18, 2020

The Facts for this I-612 Success Story and Approval

  • This Client entered the U.S. on a J-1 Visa with a two year home residency requirement.
  • Client only complied with his work program for a few months and did not leave the U.S.
  • Client later married a U.S. citizen.
  • Client’s U.S. citizen spouse went to a psychologist and we argued exceptional emotional hardship.
  • Client’s U.S. citizen spouse had previously suffered a miscarriage.
  • Client’s U.S. citizen spouse has family and religious ties to the U.S.
  • Client’s family member was a victim of horrific violence in his home country.

The Ranchod Law Group Immigration Attorneys also argued exceptional financial hardship as the couple was working to pay off debt.

These cases are not easy to win but we did the most that we could with the available evidence and we are so happy clients will be able to continue their lives together in the U.S.

J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval and Success Story (Approval Date 06/24/2020)

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J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval (Approval date. 06/24/2020)




Read our Success Stories, See other Letters of Approval

  • Filed: 01/30/2019
  • Form I-613 Sent by USCIS to DOS on 01/06/2020
  • DOS Favorable recommendation on: 06/23/2020
  • USCIS Approval: 06/24/2020

At the time The Ranchod Law Group applied for this exceptional hardship waiver, the client had been in the United States for six years. He has two children born in the U.S.

The Ranchod Law Group argued that one child had an established medical history of respiratory distress and Egypt is notorious for its history of very poor air quality. We also argued that compounding the issue of air quality in Egypt is the lack of adequate medical care.

Also, the children spoke and were exclusively spoken to in English. As a consequence, the relocation of the family would result in exceptional educational and social hardship for the children.

We also argued that because of his low prospective salary in Egypt client wouldn’t be able to provide adequate support for his children abroad. Based on all these factors we were able to build, document, and argue a successful case for the client.

J-1 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval: I-612 Application Success Story

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I-612 Hardship Wavier Approval for Indian National Doctor who conducts medical research




Date Waiver was Filed: 9-27-17
Date of Approval: 9-09-19
Client is a native of: India

Our Indian native client is an accomplished doctor who conducts medical research. To get her J-1 waiver approved, we proved that our client’s United States Citizen relative (her young daughter) would suffer extreme hardship if her mother were to return to her home country of India to fulfill the two-year foreign residency requirement without her and with her.

The facts of this case: how we proved exceptional hardship

Client’s Daughter:

  • needed to stay in the United States to continue seeing a highly-knowledgeable medical specialist to help with her specific medical condition – which she would not have access to if she were to return to India with her mother;
  • could not remain in the United States without her mother: the separation was not an option as the child was fully dependent on maternal care. The baby was exclusively breastfed and refused formula.

Furthermore, we also proved that client’s husband:

  • would be adversely affected if he were to stay in the home country or remain in the United States without our client;
  • was only two years away from being eligible to naturalize; relocating to India would delay this process;
  • was seeing a psychologist for severe mental conditions and a physician for a physical ailment. Both of which would be difficult to attend to in the same high-quality manner if they were to relocate to India;
  • would not be able to continue his work, since his occupation’s field is far behind in India and lacks the progress and solid foundation that exists in America

In addition to all this, if the family were to relocate to India, they would face extreme hardship as they would need to sell their house, and in doing so, they would deplete their savings and have nothing to return to America with except for damaged credit and debt.

Our client’s J-1 waiver was approved on 9/09/19

Our client will do a lot of good for patients and, through her research, for the future of medicine.

Additional information and other success stories about I-612 Waivers:

I-612 Hardship Waiver Approval Success Story for Canadian Native

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I-612 Hardship Waiver Letter of Approval for a medical geneticist Canadian native client




Our Canadian native client is a medical specialist who was pregnant with her first child when she contacted our firm to file her J-1 waiver case.

We proved that our client’s United States Citizen husband and his United States Citizen parents would suffer exceptional hardship if she returned to her home country of Canada to fulfill the two-year foreign residency requirement and if her husband et al were to relocate to Canada with her.

Her spouse would be devastated because of his inability to continue his career abroad and because of the couple’s obligations to his elderly sick American parents. He had sacrificed so much to become a United States board certified specialist (spending 14 years in education and training) and is unable to practice in Canada.

Furthermore, he had mental health issues including generalized anxiety disorder. Any other scenario aside from an approval of this waiver would be severely detrimental to his mental health and ability to function.

Finally, he would not send his wife to Canada to be a single mother to their child, he would not remain in the United States separated from his wife and child, nor would he separate the child from its mother and send his wife to Canada by herself.

Our client is one among the severe shortage of medical specialists.

Current wait times to be seen by this specialist for initial evaluations is up to 11 weeks. If consulted and seen early, therapies can be put into place to prevent further damage to overall health.

Fortunately, because of her J-1 approval our client can continue helping a vulnerable population.

Additional information and other success stories about I-612 Waivers:

Responding to a Hardship Waiver RFE

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Hi this is Kaushik Ranchod of The Ranchod Law Group here, coming to you live. Today we’re going to talk about a case study of what to do when you get an RFE for a hardship waiver.

I just had a consultation with someone who hired an attorney and they filed the hardship waiver but they didn’t file it in a way that would be in the clients best interest because it was not well prepared.

Unfortunately there was a statement of reason and that was it. There was no legal brief and the supporting arguments didn’t demonstrate the exceptional hardship.

So it’s really extremely important that the hardships are flushed out. In this situation their hardships were just basically stated and that is not enough. It needs to be backed up with evidence, it needs to be demonstrated through not only flushing out exactly what would happen if you faced hardship as a US citizen or permanent resident if you had to go back to the home country, but also it needs to be backed up with evidence and in this situation it was just unfortunately statements that were written by the actual applicant, and the applicant did the best job that they could.

But the attorney really did not. It appeared to me the attorney did not provide guidance or do anything that would take the case a step above to result in an approval. You know sometimes requests for evidence, they do happen but they can be prevented in many situations or even if you get a RFE it’s easier to respond if the case was thoroughly prepared: in this situation the case wasn’t thoroughly prepared so the RFE is going to be very difficult to substantiate and build.

Basically a whole new case needs to be built because nothing was done, so it makes it much more difficult if nothing was done. Now if the attorney does prepare a very thorough case from the get-go, then it’s a lot easier to respond to the RFE. So if you’re in a situation where you get a RFE and sometimes if you hire a new attorney, they may need to start over and rebuild the whole case just does it, it was a new filing depending upon what was done.

So I invite you to contact us at (916) 613-3553.

If you do get a RFE don’t worry you can respond to it and get an approval we’ve done that in many many situations you just need to make sure that you get the right legal counsel and if you have questions call us at (916) 613-3553 or email us at info@ranchodlaw.com thanks and have an awesome day!

Additional information on Requests for Evidence (RFE):

J Waiver Approval for a Brazilian national married to a U.S. citizen

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I-612 Approval Notice




More good news on the J Waiver front! Our client, a Brazilian national, is married to a United States citizen who was working towards his master’s degree, who had a long-standing career with a well-known company, and who ran a small business on the side. With all of these things going on, he had a lot to lose if he had to relocate to Brazil for two years to be with his wife. We argued that because of his ties to the U.S. —including financial obligations— that relocation would impose exceptional hardship; we also highlighted unfavorable conditions in Brazil like high crime and prevalence of communicable diseases that would add to the hardship.

What was interesting in this case was that the two had already experienced separation, so the United States citizen husband, despite all of the hardship, was not willing to remain behind while his wife was in Brazil for two years.

During their short separation, he engaged in unhealthy coping mechanisms which affected his work. Luckily, she was able to return and prevent him from financial ruin. USCIS issued an onerous RFE which The Ranchod Law Group was able to successfully overcome.

Additional information and other success stories about I-612 Waivers: