CGFNS Exam To Be Offered In Manila Greatly Easing Travel And

In a dramatic development on February 8, 2007 the National Council of State Boards of Nursing approved Manila, Philippines as an official testing site for the administration of the NCLEX examination. Although there are several locations outside the United States where this exam is already given (including London, Seoul, Hong Kong, Mumbai) these locations are not convenient for nursing candidates from the Philippines and would result in significant travel expense.

By locating a testing center in Manila Philippines nursing school students and graduates are relieved of a great financial burden and the stress of travel on top of the significant demands of this exam.

Significant credit goes to the Philippine government who were instrumental in assuring officials at NCSBN of their commitment to providing a secure test center that will measure up to NCSBN testing center criteria.

Nurses seeking to immigrate to the U.S. should keep in mind that pre-filing requirements for nurses are substantial requiring an approved visa screen from CGFNS (Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools). The visa screen requires proof of the sufficiency of the foreign education and degree, passing one of the three English tests the Test for English as a Foreign Language “TOEFL”, the Test for English in International Communication “TOEIC”, or the International English Language Testing System “IELTS”. Finally CGFNS requires passage of an approved test of knowledge and nursing skills or NCLEX examination.

As many readers are aware the Nurses (RN’s) and Physical Therapists (“PT’s) have had their jobs classified as shortage occupations allowing them to forego normal procedures for certifying their job with the Department of Labor. Significant delays, however, still exist as prior allotment of visas by Congress have run out, leaving significant waiting periods for their visa numbers to become “current”. (As recently as January 07 Visa Bulletin, Nurses were listed as Schedule A workers with an October 2001 processing date, recently Schedule A has been removed from the bulletin leading many practitioners to believe the Schedule 3 preference category in the March 07 Visa bulletin as the applicable processing date of August 2002)

Because of the current priority date delays it is advisable to have an employer file a petition even before the months long visa screen process has been completed. Once the visa screen certificate is issued this can be submitted with the approved immigrant visa petition to U.S. Consular officers. In the case of Nurses and Physical therapists residing in the U.S. they must submit the visa screen as part of the adjustment of status petition.

As with all immigration cases there are facts unique to your case which will require careful consideration by a qualified immigration attorney, and it is highly recommended that you consult with qualified counsel before acting on any information provided in this article.

Robert J. DuPont is the founding attorney for The Law Offices of Robert J. DuPont. Mr. DuPont graduated from Yale University and USC Law School. He is admitted to the California Supreme Court, Federal District Courts in the Central and Northern Districts of California, as well as the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. DuPont has been a speaker at ILW, a leading immigration law publisher. He was the founder of the Immigration Law Committee with the Beverly Hills Bar Association. Mr. DuPont has risen to prominence with over a decade’s practice in the field of immigration law. He has brought cases to their successful conclusion before the EOIR, BIA, AAO, Federal District Court and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

A similar version of this article may have been published in the Asian Journal.