| Q-1/Q-2 Cultural Exchange Visitors/ Irish
Peace Process Participants
Q-1 Cultural Exchange
Visitors
This category allows nonimmigrants to come to the United
States for up to 15 months to participate in international
cultural exchange programs. The purpose of the Q-1 exchange
program is to provide practical training, employment, and
the sharing of the culture of the Q-1 cultural visitor’s country
of nationality.
An international cultural exchange program must meet the
following requirements:
- The program must be accessible to the U.S. public and
must take place in a school, museum, business, or other
establishment where the public is exposed to a foreign culture
as part of a structured program. Activities that take place
in private homes or isolated business settings do not qualify.
- The program must have a cultural component that is an
essential and integral part of the cultural visitor's employment
or training. Acceptable cultural components include exhibits,
courses, or lecture series about the arts, literature, history,
language, philosophy, or traditions of the Q-1's country
of nationality.
- The program must have a work component that serves as
the vehicle to achieve the cultural objective, and the sharing
of the Q-1 cultural visitor's culture must result from such
employment or training.
The Q-1 cultural visitor must be at least 18 years old and be
qualified to perform the service or labor or receive the training
stated in the position. The beneficiary must have the ability
to communicate effectively about the culture of his or her country
of nationality to the U.S. public. Command of the English language
is generally necessary, unless the cultural sharing involves
a non-verbal component, such as dancing.
The Q-1 employer must petition simultaneously for approval
of both its international cultural exchange program and the
admission of the particular international cultural exchange
visitor. The Q-1 cultural visitor's eligibility for admission
will be considered only if the international cultural exchange
program is approved.
Spouses and children of cultural visitors are classifiable
as B-2 visitors, and may maintain this status for the duration
of the cultural visitor's stay.
Q-2 Irish Peace Process Participants
The Irish Peace Process Cultural and Training Program Act
of 1998 (IPPCTPA) amended the INA by creating a new Q-2 nonimmigrant
visa subcategory. Rep. James Walsh (R-NY) sponsored this legislation.
Hence, Q-2 visas are also referred to as Walsh visas. Under
this provision residents of Northern Ireland or of the counties
of Louth, Monaghan, Cavan, Leitrim, Sligo, or Donegal within
the Republic of Ireland who are 35 years old or younger may
be issued a visa for up to 36 months. The purpose of this
new nonimmigrant subcategory is to provide such noncitizens
with practical training, employment, and the experience of
coexistence and conflict resolution so that they may return
to Ireland or Northern Ireland to bolster that region's economy
and support the peace process.
Applicants must be physically resident in either Northern
Ireland or in the designated border counties of the Republic
of Ireland for at least five preceding application to the
program. They must be between the ages of 18 and 35 at the
time of initial admission to the United States under the program.
In addition, applicants must fall within one of the following
categories:
- Unemployed people who either (a) have been unemployed
for at least three months or (b) have completed or are currently
participating in a program of the Training and Employment
Agency of Northern Ireland (T&EA) or of the Training and
Employment Authority of Ireland (FAS) or another publicly
funded training and employment program. This category also
includes people who have recently been made redundant in
their employment (i.e., lost their job) or have received
a notice of redundancy (termination of employment). They
may apply to the program immediately without having to wait
three months after becoming employed.
- Currently employed people who (a) have been employed by
the same employer for at least 90 days and (b) whose current
employer has nominated them to participate in the program
for additional training and/or job experience that will
benefit both the employee and the employer upon that person's
return to his or her prior employment.
- Students pursuing university or other further or higher
education certificates in Northern Ireland who need to obtain
work experience required for that certification.
There is no petition requirement for Q-2 visitors. However,
each candidate must have a written certification from the State
Department's program administrator indicating that he or she
has been selected for participation in the program before applying
for a Q-2 visa. The U.S. Consulate General at Belfast accepts
Q-2 visa applications from residents of Northern Ireland. The
U.S. Embassy at Dublin accepts applications for Q-2 visas from
residents of the border counties in the Republic of Ireland.
An applicant for a Q-2 visa may not apply at any other consular
post.
The entire program is short term in nature; participants
may be initially admitted into the United States only through
fiscal year 2002. The Q-2 visa program sunsets on September
30, 2005.
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) makes no provision
for derivative status for spouses or children of Q-1 cultural
visitors. Such dependents must separately qualify for nonimmigrant
visas to accompany the Q-1 to the United States. The State
Department has indicated that spouses and children of cultural
visitors are classifiable as B-2 visitors, and may maintain
this status for the duration of the cultural visitor's stay.
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