> I might not have read it correctly, but I didn't spot the point where they said their J-1 was not approved - just that it was in progress (and from what I hea

> I might not have read it correctly, but I didn't spot the point where they said their J-1 was not approved - just that it was in progress (and from what I hear, months-long approval processes seem pretty common in the States). A J-1 is initiated from a host institution, similar to how a company needs to file a Labour Condition Application (LCA) before they can hire a H1B/E3 etc. That provides you with the invitation, and you take that and all supporting evidence to a US embassy in your country of citizenship and they assess on the spot whether to approve or deny the visa. They either couldn't get sponsorship from a host institution, or the consulate officer rejected the application because of some other criteria. There's not really a "months-long" approval process.