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The U.S. needs you. The visa process shouldn't make you feel otherwise.

Doctors, nurses, and international medical graduates face fees, waivers, and retrogression that have nothing to do with your skill. See your clearest path, from a J-1 waiver to EB-3, in a free 8-minute check, then get introduced to attorneys who handle healthcare cases every day.

Start for free See how it works

The hardest part isn't the medicine. It's the waivers, the fees, and the wait.

There's a shortage, and you're the answer to it. Yet you face a fee that has climbed past anything reasonable, a two-year home requirement, ECFMG hurdles, and retrogression that can stall your life for years. You're not sure whether to pursue a J-1 waiver, an EB-3, or an H-1B, or which attorneys handle physician and nurse cases. A process this important shouldn't erode your dignity.

Clarity at every step.

See your clearest route.
A free 8-minute check shows whether a J-1 waiver, H-1B, EB-2, or EB-3 is your fastest path to practice, in plain language.
Get introduced to attorneys who handle healthcare cases.
Get introduced to attorneys who handle Conrad 30, ECFMG, and physician and nurse petitions, with their credentials in front of you.
Keep your certifications and documents in order.
Store your ECFMG, licensing, and evidence in one place, ready for every step from waiver to green card.
Reuse your profile as your status changes.
Move from J-1 to H-1B to permanent residence without starting over. Your profile carries forward with you.

Which path applies to your situation.

Every route leads to a deeper explainer built for your situation. Not sure? The free check shows which paths may apply.

We understand the gauntlet, and we won't add to it.

You trained for years to care for people. You shouldn't have to fight a bureaucracy that treats you like a problem instead of the answer to one. We built Immigration Pathways to give healthcare professionals a clearer, more humane path.

Why people trust Immigration Pathways.

Attorneys experienced in healthcare immigration.
Attorneys you're introduced to handle J-1 waivers, Conrad 30, and physician and nurse petitions every day, with their credentials and the cases they handle in view.
Guidance built for your steps.
Built specifically for immigration, our technology turns ECFMG, waivers, and retrogression into clear, accurate next steps.
Nothing hidden.
Track your status, documents, and next steps anytime. No more paying and waiting in silence.
The honest truth.
Your information stays protected, and we tell you the truth about your options, even when it isn't what you hoped to hear.

Three steps to clarity.

A clear path from your first question to an attorney experienced in your situation, with everything in one place.

  1. 01

    Step one.

    Check your eligibility.

    Answer a few questions and get a free read on whether a J-1 waiver, H-1B, or EB-3 is your fastest path.

    Check my eligibility
  2. 02

    Step two.

    Build your profile.

    Organize your ECFMG, licensing, and documents once, in one place, ready for every step.

    Get guidance
  3. 03

    Step three.

    Get introduced to a vetted attorney.

    Work with an attorney experienced in healthcare immigration in one shared space, with full visibility into your case.

    Start building my case

Practice where you're needed, without the dread.

You'll know your clearest route, you'll have an attorney experienced in cases like yours, and you'll see exactly where you stand at every step. The visa stops being the thing standing between you and your patients.

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FAQ

Can I waive the J-1 two-year home requirement?

Start with whether you're subject at all. Three things trigger it: funding from the US government, your home government or an international organization; a field that appears on your country's Exchange Visitor Skills List; or graduate medical education or training - which is why virtually every IMG who came for residency is subject, regardless of funding. Five waiver routes exist: a no objection statement from your home government, a request from an interested US federal government agency, the Conrad 30 state program, exceptional hardship to a US citizen or permanent resident spouse or child, and fear of persecution. The no objection route is closed to physicians who took J-1 status for graduate medical training on or after 10 January 1977, which leaves Conrad 30 and the agency routes as the main paths for most IMGs.

What is Conrad 30, and do I qualify?

Each state health department can recommend up to thirty J-1 physicians a year for a waiver of the two-year home residence requirement. In return you commit to at least three years of full-time practice in a designated shortage area - a HPSA, MUA or MUP - usually on H-1B status. Every state runs its own program with its own opening date, deadlines, specialty priorities and rules about which employers and sites count. Some fill their thirty places within days of opening; others don't fill them at all, which is why the state you apply to matters as much as your credentials. Planning usually needs to begin a year or more before your program ends.


With the new H-1B fees, what are my alternatives?

Where this stands today: the $100,000 entry fee introduced by proclamation in September 2025 was struck down by a district court and remains blocked while the appeal runs, and cap selection moved from a random lottery to a wage-weighted process in February 2026. Both are live and could shift again. What hasn't changed is that cap-exempt employment sits outside all of it - universities, affiliated non-profits, and non-profit or government research organizations can file at any time of year, which covers much of academic and hospital-affiliated medicine. O-1A is available to physicians with a documented record in research, teaching or clinical distinction, and the physician national interest waiver is an established EB-2 route for work in underserved areas.

How does retrogression affect my timeline?

Retrogression is when more people apply in a green card category than there are visas available that year. Per-country limits mean applicants born in India and China, particularly in EB-2 and EB-3, can wait years between an approved petition and an available visa number, and the monthly Visa Bulletin cutoff dates move backwards as well as forwards. It shapes planning more than eligibility: keeping your status valid through the wait, whether you can file adjustment of status and obtain work and travel authorization while you wait, whether EB-1 or a national interest waiver puts you in a shorter queue, and what happens as children approach twenty-one.

Do you work with nurses as well as physicians?

Yes, and the routes are genuinely different from the physician ones. Registered nurses fall under Schedule A Group I, which the Department of Labor has pre-certified, so an EB-3 skips the PERM labor certification entirely and files with an uncertified ETA-9089 - a substantial saving in time. Canadian and Mexican RNs can use TN. Most healthcare workers need a VisaScreen certificate before a visa is issued, though physicians are exempt from that requirement. H-1B depends on the role: many staff nursing positions don't require a bachelor's degree and so don't meet the specialty occupation test, but advanced practice, specialty and nurse management roles often do.

How do the attorney introductions work?

Once you've completed the eligibility check and created your profile to organize your information, we introduce you to licensed immigration attorneys whose practice covers your visa category and jurisdiction. Each attorney has been verified: bar admission, experience, and practice focus.


You review the introductions, choose who you'd like to speak with, and have your consultation. You are never obligated to hire anyone we introduce you to, and the attorney is never obligated to take your case. Immigration Pathways is not a law firm and not a lawyer referral service. We don't select an attorney for you or steer you toward one; we introduce you to attorneys whose stated practice covers your situation, and the choice is yours.

How much does the whole process cost?

There are two parts. The eligibility check and organizing your information on Immigration Pathways are free. Legal fees are set by the attorney you choose, agreed directly between you and them, and shown to you before you commit. Government filing fees are separate and set by USCIS and the State Department.


Attorneys on the platform quote fixed-scope fees wherever the case allows, so you know the cost of each stage up front rather than paying by the hour. We don't add a percentage to your attorney's fee, and we never charge you for an introduction.

Is this legal advice?

No. Immigration Pathways is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. The eligibility check, the pathway information on this site, and anything our team tells you are general information to help you understand your options and organize your case. They are not a legal opinion about your situation, and using the platform does not create an attorney-client relationship with us.


Legal advice comes from the licensed immigration attorney you choose to work with. Your attorney–client relationship is with them, your communications with them are protected in the ordinary way, and they are responsible for your legal strategy and filings.