H-2B Visa for Non-Agricultural Workers

H-2B Visa Guidelines

Businesses are responsible for initiating the H-2B visa application process and take certain actions to secure entry into the U.S. for their temporary workers.

1. The business must obtain a temporary labor certification for H-2B worker application to the Department of Labor (DOL)
2. The business must file USCIS Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker using the labor certification as initial evidence
3. After Form I-129 is approved, temporary workers who reside outside the U.S. can apply for the H-2B visa at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate and seek admission to the United States

Temporary foreign workers with an H-2B visa may bring spouses and minor, unmarried children into the United States. Family members are provided H-4 nonimmigrant status, which does not allow for employment.

H-2B Visa Qualifications

To qualify for H-2B nonimmigrant classification, employers must do the following:

• Show to authorities that the need for workers’ services is temporary
• Show to authorities that too few qualified U.S. workers are willing and able to perform the temporary work
• Show to authorities that hiring H-2B workers will not reduce wages and working conditions for similarly employed U.S. workers

H-2B visas are only available to the citizens of certain countries. A full list of eligible countries can be found on the Federal Register (Effective January 18, 2018).

H-2B Visa Limitations

H-2B visas are typically valid for the period of time authorized by the temporary labor certification.  H-2B status can be extended in one year increments. Each extension must be accompanied with a new temporary labor certification.  The maximum period of stay is three years and after a temporary worker has accumulated three years under H-2B status, he or she must leave the U.S. for an uninterrupted period of three months before seeking readmission as an H-2B worker.

There is a limit to the number of H-2B visas issued by the United States. The current limit is 66,000 annually, with half issued to workers who begin employment in the first half of the fiscal year (October – March) and the remainder issued in the second half (April – September). Unused visas do not carry over.