H1B Visa - Please help, complicated situation

[LexiMStL]

Sorry in advance for the length of this post!

Im a US citizen, but my boyfriend is a Venezuelan citizen. He has an I-130 app through his mother, a US citizen. It has taken years, and will take anywhere between 2 and 4 more years to even be processed.

He is a doctor, but has not taken the USMLE Steps (required for medical licensure) so he cannot yet obtain a position in the US as a practitioner.

He needs to be in the US as soon as possible so he can begin taking the steps, and looking for a position in a residency program. Not to mention, so we can be together, lol.

My question: Can he perhaps obtain a position in the field of medicine which is not actually practicing medicine and through that, obtain an H1B visa? While working in that position, he would take the Steps, and eventually, his I130 may come through.

Is that possible? To obtain a position through H1B status for which one is OVER qualified?

If so, any ideas on what kind of position that may be? Medical translation? Anything??

Also, could the filing for an H1B visa cause any problems with his I130 app? Would he be denied the H1B simply because he has an immigration process open through USCIS??

Please help!

[sakura]

I know a lot about the USMLE process...firstly he does not need to be in the US for all of the steps, so he can actually begin preparation in his home country if he wishes. I think that he only needs to be in the US for step 2 CS and step 3 - for step 2 CS he can actually come as a visitor because it tests the candidate's ability to interact with patients. For step 3 he can wait until he has a residency placement before having to take that step.

As for any other job he can do to get to the US - firstly, you need to make sure that entering the US on another immigrant visa won't jeopardise his mother's family application. He can obviously work in any job other than as a licensed doctor...medical translation or as a medical consultant, for example, but I am no expert on this...or any other job that would get him a visa. Maybe he could contact the large pharmaceutical companies.

The one thing you should check is whether his H1b application would affect his I130.

[LexiMStL]

Hi there,

From what I understand, an H1B won't jeapordize his I-130. Supposedly, it is a "duel intent" visa. It says that after a certain period of time, he can apply for permanent residency. It says nothing about existing apps for permanent residency though.

We are really looking for the fastest way for him to get here because I am having immigration problems of my own in Venezuela. We just want to be together. As far as taking Step 2 while here as a tourist, he is not eligible for any type of non-immigrant visa (maybe the H1B is the exception, I don't know) because of his pending immigrant status.

The idea about the pharmaceutical companies is a good one, I'll look into it. As of now, medical translation is in HIGH demand here in Charlotte, NC, where I live. I am hitting up any contacts I may have in the medical industry, lol.

Any other suggestions are GREATLY appreciated!

[gwaiyellow]

Or since you are an American citizen, you can marry him and he can either come on a K-1 or a K-3 visa, which is a lot faster than any other options.