Maryland Department of Health
Office of Population Health Improvement

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Maryland Conrad 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) Program

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The 2024 Maryland ​Conrad 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) Program application cycle
 is now open
for a second cohort of appications through February 1, 2025.​​



About
​ ​ The purpose of the Maryland Conrad State 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) Program is to recruit needed primary care and specialty physicians into federally-designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). The Maryland Office of Workforce Development reviews applications and makes recommendations to the U.S. Department of State for foreign-born physicians requesting waivers from their J-1 Visa. The waiver is granted in exchange for the physician's agreement to work in an under-served area for three years.

Congress and the President signed into law a bill granting each state the ability to sponsor annually as many as thirty (30) waivers for J-1 Visa physicians to work in federally-designated shortage areas. This legislation is referred to as the Conr​ad 30 Bill. 

The Conrad 30 (J-1 Visa Waiver) Program exists because states are permitted to recommend Visa waivers for a physician recruited to practice in federally designated HPSAs and Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs) of the State. Maryland is authorized, in Section 214-(1) of the Immigration and Nationalization Act [8USC-Section 1184(1)], to submit waiver recommendations to the Waiver Review Section of the U.S. Department of State. In Maryland, this authority is delegated to the Department of Health where it is handled by the Office of Workforce Development within the Office of Population Health Improvement.  

The State of Maryland recommends physicians holding J-1 Visas for waivers, with the priority to improve access to primary care services in federally designated shortage areas. Out of the 30 slots, Maryland can utilize up to 10 spots as FLEX spots. FLEX spots do not require the provider to be working in a federally designated shortage area.​​
Process​ in Maryland

Every y​ear Maryland receives 30 J-1 Visa Waiver slots. These slots are allocated on the federal fiscal year (October- September). Applications must be uploaded between October 1 through December 1st.  See the link  below,  J-1 Visa Application Materials, for futher details and the link to the application form.

Applicants need to be primary care and specialist physicians practicing in Flex and Non-Flex locations. Applications will be reviewed by the J-1 Visa Waiver Review Panel after December 1. For more information about the review process, click on the link below to Maryland Policy and Procedures.

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Preference of Application Types​

​OP​HI Workforce Development Program gives preference to those applications from :

  • Primary care foreign national physicians in designated Health Professional Shortage Areas​, Medically Under-served Areas, and Populations;  
  • Medical practices in under-served communities;
  • Medical practices that have a demonstrated historic commitment to serving under-served populations;
  • Medical practices that have had difficulty recrui​ting physicians because of their geographic location; and
  • State Rural Counties. ​​​​​
Tracking of Applications 

Application received for this cycle:    27

Other Foreign Physician Programs​​​​​​

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Please reach out to our office if you are requesting a letter for acknowledgement for  the HHS, ARC or MD Conrad 30 programs.  Please see our Policy and Procedures for details.  For all other letters of support, please click the link below.
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Contact​

To sign up for our Work​force Listserv to receive updates about our J-1 Visa Waiver Program cli​ck h​ere​​​.

Maryland Department of Health
201 W. Preston Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone: 410-767- 6123
mdh.providerworkforceprograms@maryland.gov​​​


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Last Updated: 12-02-202​4​