Highlights: DHS Announces 65,000 additional H-2B visas in FY 2025
- The DHS (Department of Homeland Security) has announced that it will issue additional H-2B visas to the existing cap count.
- DHS maintains an annual cap of 66,000 H-2B visas for each Fiscal year.
- As per the latest announcement, around 65,000 supplement H-2B visas will be added to Fiscal Year 2025.
- The H-2B visa allows qualifying employers in the US to recruit skilled foreign workers to perform temporary non-agricultural work.
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H-2B Cap to now get an extension of 65,000 additional visas
The DHS recently announced adding 65,000 more visas to the existing annual H-2B visa cap of 66,000. The additional visa quota will be added starting in fiscal year 2025. Earlier this year, a surplus of 19,000 H-2B Visas were open for applications from April 1 to May 14, 2024. The H-2B visa supplement cap was reached, with April 17, 2024, as the final date for returning workers to submit their petitions for additional H-2B visas for the second half of FY 2024. The overall additional visas can be considered as the maximum number of visas permitted by the authorities, similar to the temporary visas issued in FY 2024. Supplement visa caps were also issued from FY 2017 to FY 2024. The additional visa allocation will help address the workforce shortages in parts of the country that do not have sufficient workers qualified for temporary work.
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What is a US H-2B visa?
The H-2B visa is a temporary visa for non-agriculture work purposes. The program allows employers in the US to recruit foreigners or US non-citizens for temporary non-agricultural work. The employment must be temporary to meet the intermittent or peak load requirements or for seasonal work. The US employers looking to hire H-2B workers must acquire a certificate from the DOL as proof that there are no sufficient workers in the US who are qualified, willing, or available to perform the temporary work. The H-2B visa, once issued, is valid for 3 years, after which the visa holder must exit the country and seek re-admission after 3 months.
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