International cultural exchange visitor --
A nonimmigrant alien may be authorized to enter the
United States as a participant in an international cultural exchange
program approved by the Attorney General for the purpose of providing
practical training, employment, and the sharing of the history, culture,
and traditions of the country of the alien's nationality. The period of
admission is the duration of the approved international cultural
exchange program or fifteen (15) months, whichever is shorter. A
nonimmigrant alien admitted under this provision is classifiable as a
cultural visitor in Q status.
Limitation on admission. Any alien who has been
admitted into the United States as a cultural visitor under section
101(a)(15)(Q) of the Act shall not be readmitted in Q status unless the
alien has resided and been physically present outside the United States
for the immediate prior year. Brief trips to the United States for
pleasure or business during the immediate prior year do not break the
continuity of the one-year foreign residency.
International cultural exchange program. --
A United States employer shall petition the Attorney
General on Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, for approval
of an international cultural exchange program which is designed to
provide an opportunity for the American public to learn about foreign
cultures. The United States employer must simultaneously petition on the
same Form I-129 for the authorization for one or more individually
identified nonimmigrant aliens to be admitted in Q status. These aliens
are to be admitted to engage in employment or training of which the
essential element is the sharing with the American public, or a segment
of the public sharing a common cultural interest, of the culture of the
alien's country of nationality. The cultural visitor's eligibility for
admission will be considered only if the international cultural exchange
program is approved.
Program validity. Each petition for an international
cultural exchange program will be approved for the duration of the
program, which may not exceed 15 months, plus 30 days to allow time for
the participants to make travel arrangements. Subsequent to the approval
of the initial petition, a new petition must be filed each time the
qualified employer wishes to bring in additional cultural visitors. A
qualified employer may replace or substitute a participant named on a
previously approved petition for the remainder of the program in
accordance with paragraph
(q)(6) of this section. The replacement or
substituting alien may be admitted in Q status until the expiration date
of the approved petition.
Requirements for program approval. An international
cultural exchange program must meet all of the following requirements:
(A) Accessibility to the public. The international
cultural exchange program must take place in a school, museum, business
or other establishment where the American public, or a segment of the
public sharing a common cultural interest, is exposed to aspects of a
foreign culture as part of a structured program. Activities that take
place in a private home or an isolated business setting to which the
American public, or a segment of the public sharing a common cultural
interest, does not have direct access do not qualify.
(B) Cultural component. The international cultural
exchange program must have a cultural component which is an essential
and integral part of the cultural visitor's employment or training. The
cultural component must be designed, on the whole, to exhibit or explain
the attitude, customs, history, heritage, philosophy, or traditions of
the cultural visitor's country of nationality. A cultural component may
include structured instructional activities such as seminars, courses,
lecture series, or language camps.
(C) Work component. The cultural visitor's employment
or training in the United States may not be independent of the cultural
component of the international cultural exchange program. The work
component must serve as the vehicle to achieve the objectives of the
cultural component. The sharing of the culture of the cultural visitor's
country of nationality must result from his or her employment or
training with the qualified employer in the United States.
Requirements for cultural visitors. To be eligible for
cultural visitor status, an alien must be a bona fide nonimmigrant who:
- Is at least 18 years of age at the time the
petition is filed;
- Is qualified to perform the service or labor or
receive the type of training stated in the petition;
- Has the ability to communicate effectively about
the cultural attributes of his or her country of nationality to the
American public; and
- Has resided and been physically present outside of
the United States for the immediate prior year, if he or she was
previously admitted as a cultural visitor
