The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has attained the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the second half of fiscal year (FY) 2024. Petitions for new cap-subject H-2B workers, with employment start dates from April 1, 2024, to Oct. 1, 2024, were accepted until March 7, 2024. USCIS will reject new cap-subject petitions received after this date for the specified employment period.
Exceptions to the cap include petitions for current H-2B workers extending their stay, fish roe processors, technicians, supervisors, and workers in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and/or Guam until Dec. 31, 2029.
Additionally, filing dates for supplemental H-2B visas under the FY 2024 H-2B supplemental visa temporary final rule have been outlined. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) published a rule in November 2023, increasing the cap by up to 64,716 visas for FY 2024. These supplemental visas are available to U.S. businesses facing irreparable harm without the ability to employ requested H-2B workers.
Key filing dates for supplemental visas include:
March 22, 2024: Petitions for employers seeking workers from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Haiti, Colombia, Ecuador, and Costa Rica for an employment start date from April 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024.
March 22, 2024: Petitions for the additional 19,000 returning worker visas for the early second half of FY 2024 (April 1 to May 14).
April 22, 2024: Petitions for the additional 5,000 returning worker visas for the late second half of FY 2024 (May 15 to Sept. 30).
Petitions under this temporary final rule will be accepted until Sept. 16, 2024, or until the applicable cap is reached, whichever occurs first.
A reminder is issued regarding upcoming changes in required fees and form editions for H-2B petitions. A final rule announced on Jan. 30, 2024, adjusts fees effective April 1, 2024. Petitions postmarked on or after this date must include the new fees and use the 04/01/24 edition of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. No grace period will be provided for filing the new version of the form without the new fee calculation. USCIS has released a preview version of the 04/01/24 edition of Form I-129.
Source: USCIS
