The U.S. Department of State Announces New Pilot Program for 2011 Summer Work Travel Programs

May 12, 2011

The U.S. Department of State has recently completed a comprehensive review of policies and regulations regarding its Summer Work Travel program, which allows international university students to work and travel in the U.S. during their summer vacations. Under the program, participants enter the U.S. on the J-1 Visa and can work in seasonal positions in areas across the country for up to 4 months.

On April 24th of this year, the U.S. Department of State announced regulatory changes for the Summer Work Travel Program which will take effect this summer.

How These Regulatory Changes Will Affect Employers

  • Only students who are nationals from one of the 36 Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries may enter the U.S. without a confirmed job placement.  The list of countries can be found here.
  • Students who are not nationals of the 36 Visa Waiver Countries will need to have their job offers vetted and confirmed by a sponsor like InterExchange before a DS-2019 Form is issued.  Each student’s verified employer’s business name, address and the student’s job title will be printed on the DS-2019 Form.   Fewer “walk-in students", those who wait until the last minute to find employment, will be available this coming season.  Employers are strongly encouraged to commit to their summer season hiring early.
  • Students who enter without pre-arranged jobs (VWP) must still have their job placements confirmed before they can start work.  If working with InterExchange, the terms and conditions of employment are verified before job placements are approved.
  • Host employers are expected to provide program participants with the approximate number of hours of paid employment per week that they agreed to when the sponsor vetted the job offer.
  • Host employers are required to pay participants for any overtime work, in accordance with state-specific and federal employment laws.
  • Host employers must promptly notify sponsors when participants start their jobs and must also notify sponsors of any changes in employment conditions, any issues related to the welfare of the participants, or if the participants are not meeting their obligations to the host employers. 
  • Sponsors must obtain and verify the host employers' Employer Identification Numbers used for tax purposes.
  • Sponsors must verify the Worker's Compensation Insurance Policy or equivalent in each state where a participant will be placed or, if applicable, evidence of that state's exemption from requirement of such coverage. 
  • U.S. Department of State officials and U.S. Embassy staff may take additional steps to review and verify all jobs and will call selected employers to verify their hiring procedures.

The U.S. Department of State Announces New Pilot Program for 2011 Summer Work Travel Programs

NEW YORK, NY – March 1, 2011 – The U.S. Department of State has recently completed a comprehensive review of policies and regulations regarding its Summer Work Travel program, which allows international post-secondary students to visit the United States to work and travel during their summer vacations. Under the program, participants enter the U.S. on the J-1 Visa and can work in seasonal positions in areas across the country for a period of up to 4 months.

The U.S. Department of State announced the implementation of the new Pilot Program for Summer Work Travel Program participants from Belarus, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania, Russia, and Ukraine earlier this year. Starting with the Summer 2011 season, participants from these countries will now be required to have a verified and legitimate job offer before traveling to the U.S. The J-1 Visa sponsor organization will now be responsible for identifying, evaluating and securing job placements for each student.

InterExchange, a leading cultural exchange organization for more than 40 years, was at the forefront of these policy changes. The organization has been one of the first to respond to previous reports of unregulated third-party agencies who had misrepresented the program in the Pilot Program countries.

“We felt that steps needed to be taken to protect the interests of our participants as well as our U.S. based employers who hire them.” says Casey Slamin, Director of the InterExchange Work & Travel USA program. “InterExchange staff has always worked directly with employers and participants to maintain the high standards of the program, ensuring that all parties are getting the most out of the cultural exchange experience and the Pilot Program gives us the opportunity to further demonstrate our leadership in this approach.”

Students from the Pilot Program countries will no longer be able to secure job offers through third-party job brokers, and employers will need to work with a designated sponsor to recruit from these countries. Employers may register with InterExchange to recruit seasonal staff for the coming summer.

The recent U.S. Department of State regulation changes may limit the number of staff available from all countries. “Walk-in students", those who wait until the last minute to find employment, are likely to be in shorter supply this coming season, so employers are strongly encouraged to commit to their summer season hiring early. Employers benefit by registering in advance to make sure they can select from a larger pool of candidates, and by providing job offers in time for participants to meet the application deadlines for their J-1 Visas.

Click here to find out more about how InterExchange is managing the Pilot Program.