J2 visa symbol meaning.

What J2 means in 22 CFR 41.12

Section 41.12 of Title 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations is titled “Classification symbols”. It opens: “A nonimmigrant visa issued to an applicant within one of the classes described in this section shall bear an appropriate visa symbol to show its classification. The symbol shall be inserted in the space provided on the visa.” Table 1 to that section then lists each symbol with its class and the section of law. The row for J2 is:

The statute behind the symbol

The “section of law” column points to the Immigration and Nationality Act as codified at 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15), the definition of “immigrant”, which lists the classes of nonimmigrant aliens by letter. The definition begins: “The term “immigrant” means every alien except an alien who is within one of the following classes of nonimmigrant aliens”. J2 is in the group below.

The closing words of subparagraph (J) cover family members:

“and the alien spouse and minor children of any such alien if accompanying him or following to join him”

Source: 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15), INA 101(a)(15)(J)

The quotation is the statute’s own text as shown by Cornell’s Legal Information Institute on November 2, 2026, with cross-references left as printed. The statute is long and has been amended many times, so read the full subparagraph before relying on any part of it.

Reading the J2 row against its neighbours

The table has two J rows. J2 is “Spouse or Child of J1” and J1 is “Exchange Visitor”. They cite the same subparagraph, (J), so the statute reference does not tell the two apart; the symbol does.

Nothing in Table 1 says who may be admitted in this class or what documents are needed for it. The table only names the class.

What this page does not tell you

A visa symbol is a label. Table 1 says what each class is called and where the classification comes from in law. It says nothing about who qualifies, what evidence is needed, how long anyone may stay, whether work is allowed or what an application costs. Those answers sit in other regulations and in agency guidance and they change, so use the lookup above to read the label and then take the question to the State Department’s visa pages (travel.state.gov, which blocked automated reading on November 2, 2026, so we have not cited its contents) or a licensed immigration attorney.

For other codes seen on immigration paperwork, see the SEVIS ID Validator, which is a separate tool, and the I-94 number format checker.

Sources

Sources opened and read November 2, 2026.

• eCFR: 22 CFR 41.12 Classification symbols, Table 1 (current text; last amended 2023-09-12 per the eCFR version history) (read November 2, 2026)
• eCFR renderer API, the same section as machine-readable text (read November 2, 2026)
• Cornell Legal Information Institute: 8 U.S.C. 1101, definitions, subsection (a)(15) (read November 2, 2026)