The Military Acquisitions of Vital National Interest program, or MAVNI, authorizes the military services to specifically recruit foreign nationals in high-demand healthcare specialties or who possess certain language skills in short supply, such as Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, and Russian.
A majority of the MAVNI recruits have been medical doctors who enlist in the U.S. Army Reserve and who receive an officer’s commission once they obtain U.S. citizenship. MAVNI recruits do not have to apply for a permanent resident card – commonly known as a green card — and enjoy an expedited citizenship process. Applicants undergo a security background check and are required to commit to at least three years of active duty or six years in the reserves.
The program began initially as a one-year pilot program in 2009 to recruit 1,000 enlistees. It was reauthorized in 2012 and extended to include 1,500 recruits, but was briefly on hiatus last September while the Defense Department examined how President Obama’s immigration executive order would affect it. MAVNI was initially open to just foreign nationals already living in the United States legally, but Obama’s executive order extended it to undocumented immigrants who came to the states as children, as part of the 2012 presidential directive known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Immigration advocates had lobbied to allow young undocumented immigrants to enlist in the military, but that legislation stalled in Congress. While Obama extended MAVNI eligibility to immigrants who fall under the DACA program, it is unclear how many would actually apply, as the MAVNI program has specific language and medical skills requirements.
The Pentagon says that some 2,900 recruits have enlisted through the MAVNI program since it began, with most heading to the Army as either medical personnel or translators.
Jessica Wright, Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, signed a memorandum last month extending the program until the end of fiscal year 2016.
