The H-2B visa permits non-agricultural temporary workers to come to the US for short-term jobs. The number of visas issued is capped, and the visa has become so popular that the number of available visas has been used up very quickly. In fact, this period’s visas were gone by January 26. The annual cap on these visas is 66,000, but usually there are hundreds of thousands of applicants.
The cap periods ordinarily run from the first part of October to the end of March and from the first part of April to the end of September, so the USCIS is only accepting petitions for exempt workers for jobs starting before April 1. Exempt workers include workers who are already in the US on an H-2B visa and who want to extend their stays. Also exempt are fish roe processors or workers in the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) or Guam.
The H-2B visas are ordinarily granted for a period of one year, but extensions may be granted up to a maximum of three years.
Employers must obtain labor certifications for a specified number of employees from the Department of Labor. The employer needs to demonstrate that his need for employees is temporary and that there are no qualified workers available locally. Each extension needs a new labor certification to be submitted.
Petitions can be filed starting six months before the prospective employment begins, so petitions for the April 1 period are already being filed. Petitions need to be completed at least 45 days before the job is scheduled to begin in order to allow time for the petition to be processed and the visas to be issued.
H-2B visa holders can bring their spouses and children with them to the US. The spouses and children are issued H-4 visas, which are valid as long as the H-2B visa is valid.
A holder of an H-2B visa needs to demonstrate that he or she intends to leave the US when the visa expires. To apply for a green card with an H-2B visa requires that the applicant do so based on a family immigration petition, which requires having a spouse, adult child, parent, or sibling who is a US citizen or permanent resident.
If you’ve got questions about the H-2B or other immigration matters, we’d love to answer them please contact us today to learn more!
English 
Español 
العربية