1998 News

CGFNS/ICHP Announces VisaScreen^® Certificates to be Issued Soon

PHILADELPHIA, PA — OCTOBER 16, 1998 — The Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) will soon begin to issue VisaScreen^® certificates to applicants who qualify under section 343 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996. The certificates will be issued through the VisaScreen^® program of the International Commission on Healthcare Professions (ICHP), a division of CGFNS.

CGFNS is releasing this announcement in light of the publication on October 14, 1998 by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) of interim regulations that implement a small portion of section 343 of IIRIRA. Under these regulations, which go into effect on December 14, 1998, INS will only accept a CGFNS/ICHP VisaScreen^® certificate from: (1) nurses, who are (2) applying for permanent resident alien status. CGFNS disagrees with this INS policy and is currently litigating the issue, but will nonetheless begin to process and issue VisaScreen certificates to qualified nurse applicants for permanent residence on October 30, 1998. CGFNS notes that INS interim regulations do not take effect until December 14, 1998 and that INS will not accept the CGFNS/ICHP VisaScreen^® certificate until that date.

CGFNS/ICHP continues to accept applications for VisaScreen^® from applicants from any health care profession (except physicians) for any form of visa, temporary or permanent. In addition, applicants are advised to obtain information regarding dates and locations for the English language proficiency examinations required by section 343. Applicants must take either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), Test of Written English (TWE) and Test of Spoken English (TSE), administered through the Educational Testing Service at 609-771-7100 or Parts 1 through 3 and the Oral Interview Section of the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB)1, administered through the English Language Institute at 734-763-3452. For registration information related to these examinations, please contact the appropriate organization directly. Please note that graduates of educational programs in Australia, Canada (except Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States are exempt from the English language requirements.

To request a VisaScreen^® application packet or obtain additional information about CGFNS/ICHP services, contact: International Commission on Healthcare Professions, 3600 Market Street, Suite 400; Philadelphia, PA 19104-2665 USA; Telephone (215) 349-6735 or (215) 349-6736; Fax (215) 349-0026.

Anyone seeking further information should consult the October 14, 1998 INS notice in the Federal Register (pp55007-55012).