Member Spotlight
Dr. Tian Works to Improve Pathway to Legal Status for Dentists on H-1B Visas O riginally from Jinan, China, Geng Tian, DMD, FAGD, came to the United States in 2011. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota and his DMD from the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine. He currently practices in Leesville, South Carolina, and has pursued both a Fellowship in AGD as well as national leadership roles. As a member of AGD’s national Dental Practice Council (DPC), he chairs a new subcommittee created to identify and monitor issues that affect associate dentists in the United States on H-1B visa status. Below, he shares his personal story, as well as information about the subcommittee and its goals.
issue me a new one. Let’s just say I became way more familiar with the subway system than I ever intended. I was finally able to start my program after my OPT approval in late October, but the OPT was only valid for 9 months. I worked every Saturday and with no vacation leaves in order to complete the program successfully. Then, in January, way before my OPT ended and in order to continue practicing after residency, I scrambled to find a dental office willing to sponsor my H-1B visa because the visa is awarded through a lottery process every March (unless the employer is a cap-exempt organization like a university, hospital or federally qualified health center). For context on As many of you know, being a dentist is how competitive the application process no easy feat. Not only do we spend our days Geng Tian, DMD, FAGD is, in 2024, the selection rate was a mere fixing things in the dark, cramped and often 16.6%. Waiting for the lottery results was damp environment of the oral cavity, but incredibly nerve-wracking; missing out “It’s a pleasure for me to we also may juggle the demands of running would have meant losing my job offer and a business. Now, imagine doing all of that share my story and let you desperately searching for a cap-exempt while also dealing with the uncertainty of employer, or, worse, having to leave the your legal status in the country. That’s the know that AGD recognizes country with my family. reality of practicing dentistry on an H-1B visa Licensing was another hurdle. Because of the struggles dentists on — it adds a whole new layer of complexity. my immigration status, the process had extra The H-1B visa allows U.S. employers to steps. Many states link the expiration date H-1B visas face.” hire professionals of other nationalities in of professional licenses to the length of the specialized fields, and I’m incredibly grateful applicant’s legal status. When I applied for for it. Without this program, my four years my South Carolina dental license in March, of dental school would have been nothing more than an expensive it was initially valid for just six months — until September. Luckily, lesson in student debt and a collection of dental textbooks. once my visa was approved, my license was extended to its full term. Employment-based immigration is my only option for staying in Once granted, an H-1B visa is valid for three years and can the United States, but the process is long and exhausting. be extended up to six years total. If you’re in the process of After graduating, I had just one year of temporary work obtaining a green card (permanent residency), the H-1B can authorization to gain experience working in different locations be extended beyond the six-year limit until the green card is via optional practical training (OPT) — unlike STEM [science, granted. However, since the visa is employer-specific, changing technology, engineering and mathematics] graduates, who get jobs means finding a new employer willing to sponsor both the three years of OPT. Following my mentor’s advice, I chose to refine visa and the green card. The silver lining? Transferring an H-1B my skills through a general practice residency (GPR). to a new employer doesn’t require going through the lottery again Unfortunately, a small mistake during the visa application — just filing a petition for transfer. process — whether by an attorney, an applicant or even a school Since graduating in 2018, I’ve only traveled abroad once to official — can cause a denial, doubling the processing time. I visit my parents. To return to the United States, I had to apply learned this the hard way. Instead of diving straight into my GPR, I for a visa stamp through an interview at a U.S. embassy abroad. ended up on an unplanned five-month “vacation” in New York City Although this process usually takes about a week, the interview while waiting for my OPT issues to be resolved. To make matters may need to be scheduled way ahead of time, and administrative worse, Pennsylvania refused to renew my driver’s license because checks can lead to lengthy delays, making it nearly impossible to my immigration status was still pending, and New York wouldn’t squeeze into a short vacation. If the stamp isn’t issued in time, my
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JUNE 2025