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An Explanation of the Requirements for Nurses and Other Allied Health Care
Professionals
Nurses and other allied health care professionals seeking entry to the
United States as employees in the health care field must obtain a
certificate from the
Commission
on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS) or an equivalent independent credentialing
organization. The most common certificate is the VisaScreen Certificate
issued by the International Commission on Healthcare Professionals (ICHP), a
division of CGFNS.
The genesis of the VisaScreen requirement dates back to the Illegal
Immigrant Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996. Section
343 of IIRIRA established a new ground of inadmissibility for applicants
seeking entry to the United States to work in health care. The law dictates
that an applicant is inadmissible unless s/he presents a certificate
verifying that his/her education, training, license, and experience meet all
requirements for entry to the United States and that the applicant is
competent in both spoken and written English.
Section 343 applies broadly to all health care workers, except physicians,
and encompasses seven categories: nurses, physical therapists, occupational
therapists, speech-language pathologists and audiologists, medical
technologists (also known as clinical laboratory scientists), medical
technicians (also known as clinical laboratory technicians), and physicians'
assistants. CGFNS and its division ICHP administer the Section 343
verification scheme. VisaScreen is the title of the program offered by CGFNS
to prospective health care workers.
The VisaScreen Certificate is comprised of three parts; with an additional,
fourth requirement for nurses. The first part is an educational review,
which ensures that the applicant's education meets all applicable, statutory
and regulatory requirements for the profession in which the applicant
intends to practice, and is comparable to that of a U.S. graduate seeking
licensure. In order to meet the educational requirements for the VisaScreen
program, applicants must have:
1) successfully completed a senior secondary school education that is
separate from their professional education;
2) graduated from a government-approved, professional health care program of
at least two years in length; and
3) successfully completed a minimum number of clock and/or credit hours in
specific theoretical and clinical areas during their professional programs.
The second component of the VisaScreen Certificate is the licensure review,
which evaluates initial and all current and past licenses. Validations
provided directly to ICHP by the issuing / validating institution affirm
that the applicant has completed all practice requirements and that the
registration / licensure is authentic and has no encumbrances. As a
practical matter, applicants should be aware that, in order to satisfy the
licensure, review requires correspondence between CGFNS and the licensing
authorities which issued all past licenses to the applicant. Sufficient time
should be allowed for the licensing authority to process and forward the
required paperwork to CGFNS on behalf of the applicant. Response times vary
widely depending on the country of issuance for professional licensures.
The third component of the VisaScreen Certificate is the English language
proficiency assessment, which confirms that the applicant has demonstrated
the required competency in oral and written English by submitting passing
scores on tests approved by the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and
Human Services. To fulfill this requirement applicants may take either the
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which includes a Test of
Written English (TWE) and a Test of Spoken English (TSE); the Test of English for International
Communication (TOEIC) administered by the Educational Testing Service, or the International English Language Testing
System (IELTS), administered by Cambridge ESOL Examinations, the British
Council and IDP Education Australia. Scores from the TOEFL/TOEFL iBT, IELTS,
or TOEIC are accepted by the CGFNS.
Passing English test scores for the RNs break down as follows:
|
TOEFL (Paper) |
540 |
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TOEFL (Computer) |
207 |
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TOEFL iBT |
83 |
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TOEIC |
725 |
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IELTS |
6 |
.5 |
Certain applicants may be exempt from the English language proficiency
requirement. Applicants who have graduated from a college, university, or
professional school located in Australia, Canada (except Quebec), Ireland,
New Zealand, the United Kingdom, or the United States and where the language
of instruction was English and the language of textbooks was English are
exempt from the foreign language requirements. All English language
proficiency scores are valid for up to two years from the date of
administration.
Finally, the fourth component of the VisaScreen Certificate is applicable to
those health care workers who wish to obtain an occupational visa to
practice as nurses in the United States. Nurse applicants must present a
CGFNS Certificate or a passing score on the NCLEX-RNŽ examination to provide
proof of their nursing knowledge.
In order to obtain a CGFNS Certificate, applicants must successfully
complete CGFNS's Certification Program, a three-part program comprised of a
credentials review, a one-day Qualifying Exam of nursing knowledge, and an
English language proficiency exam. Foreign registered nurses applying to the CGFNS Certificate Program have the option of taking the TOEFL, the TOEIC, or
the IELTS English language exams. There is no oral examination requirement
for the CGFNS Certificate. Passing scores for each exam are the same as for
the VisaScreen Certificate.
Upon successful completion of all three elements of the program, applicants
are awarded a CGFNS Certificate. Please note that the CGFNS Certificate is
distinguished from the VisaScreen Certificate. Although each certificate is
issued by CGFNS, the CGFNS Certificate is applicable only to nurse
applicants, whereas the VisaScreen Certificate is a requirement for all
seven categories of allied health care professionals. Most states require
the CGFNS Certificate of nurses educated abroad before they can take the
NCLEX-RNŽ examination.
Conclusion
The laws establishing the requirements for applicants seeking entry to the
United States for employment as health care workers continue to rapidly
evolve and change. The Law Office of Sheela Murthy is committed to keeping
you abreast of the most recent requirements for health care workers so that
you can continue to tap the global marketplace and meet your needs for
qualified health care professionals.
Copyright Š MURTHY LAW
FIRM. All Rights Reserved
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TOEFL
