United States (US)
The United States is a federation of 50 states and the District of Columbia spanning six time zones from the Atlantic to the Pacific, plus Alaska and Hawaii.
Qualification Recognition
Getting your foreign credentials recognised in United States.
No central US credential evaluation authority. Employers and state licensing boards assess independently. For regulated professions: often must retest or complete US equivalency. For unregulated professions: employer decides.
Regulated Professions
Process: Each state has its own licensing board. Physicians: USMLE Steps 1-3 (even for foreign-trained), residency match in US (ECFMG certification prerequisite), state license. Nurses: NCLEX-RN. Attorneys: state bar exam (some states accept foreign LLM+UBE, CA/NY most lenient). Engineers: FE + PE exams.
Authority: State-by-state licensing boards. Federal agencies for federal professions (medical specialties via ABMS).
Timeline: Physicians 3-7+ years (ECFMG + residency). Nurses 6-18 months. Engineers 2-5 years. Teachers 1-2 years with alt certification.
Cost: Physician re-licensing $10,000-50,000+ inc exams and prep. Nurse NCLEX $200 + CGFNS $450. Bar exam $600-1000.
Academic Degrees
Authority: No single authority. Credential evaluation agencies: WES (World Education Services), ECE (Educational Credential Evaluators), Josef Silny & Associates, IEE.
Process: Contact evaluation agency. Submit: official transcripts direct from institution, diploma copies, translations if needed. Receive course-by-course or document-by-document evaluation.
Equivalency service: WES iGPA Calculator and course-by-course evaluation ($160-205). NACES members recognized by most employers and universities.
Document Rules
Apostille: US is Hague Apostille Convention member. Foreign documents for US use require apostille from home country. Apostille state documents (birth/marriage) via issuing state's Secretary of State. Federal documents via US Department of State Authentications Office.
Legalisation: For non-Hague countries: chain authentication. Notarize → Secretary of State → US State Department → foreign embassy. Or use State Department Authentications Office.
Sworn translation: US has no "sworn translator" system. Certified translations from ATA-certified translator accepted. USCIS requires certification statement. Courts may require sworn affidavit of translator.
Counselling & Help
- - World Education Services (WES.org)
- - ECE (ece.org)
- - NACES.org member agencies
- - State licensing boards — find your state board at usa.gov/state-consumer (consumer/professional licensing directory)
- - ECFMG for physicians (ecfmg.org)
- - AACRAO EDGE international credential database
- - Upwardly Global (upwardlyglobal.org — immigrant professional support free)
Typical Timelines
Credential evaluation: 7-20 business days standard, 1-3 days rush. Professional licensing varies drastically — see regulatedProfessions examples.
For many jobs (tech, finance, sales, marketing), no formal evaluation needed — employer decides. US employers often value US experience over foreign credentials. Many immigrants initially take below-credential work, building US experience before re-entering profession. Programs like Upwardly Global specialize in credential advocacy.
Qualification Recognition
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