USCIS Reaches H-2B Cap for First Half of FY 2027
Current rules
USCIS has reached the statutory H-2B numerical cap for the first half of FY 2027. New petitions seeking H-2B workers subject to that cap can no longer be used to obtain a first-half FY 2027 allocation once USCIS's cap procedures take effect. The H-2B programme has long been subject to a statutory annual cap. The standard statutory limit is 66,000 H-2B workers per fiscal year, divided between the first and second halves of the fiscal year, with 33,000 visas allocated to each half. Workers returning in certain circumstances and workers in other statutory exemption categories are not counted against the cap.
Overview
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that it received a sufficient number of petitions to meet the H-2B visa cap for the first half of fiscal year 2027. Consequently, the agency will reject any new cap-subject H-2B petitions seeking an employment start date before 1 April 2027 that were received after 4 September 2026. This action impacts employers seeking to bring H-2B workers to the United States during this period.
Explained simply
Imagine there's a limited number of special 'work tickets' (H-2B visas) that businesses can get for seasonal workers in the U.S. The government has announced that all the tickets for jobs starting before April 2027 have now been claimed. If a business tried to ask for one of these tickets after 4 September 2026, their request will be turned down because there are no more left for that period.
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