H-2B Visa for Non-Agricultural Workers

The H-2B visa, just like the H-1B visa, contains a classic work and residence permit for the USA. However, the H-2B visa allows only one very short-term, seasonal activity.

Labor Market Review

The entry requirements for the H-2B visa are very strict. The employer must, among other things, by Temporary Labor Certification prove that no other suitable worker can be found. In addition, as just mentioned, it must be proven that the work is of a short-term nature, e.g. due to a seasonal bottleneck, extraordinary event or major order.

H-2A and H-2B country list

Since January 2012, H-2B visas have been issued to nationals of certain countries. Currently, applicants from about 80 countries can apply for H-2B visas. Nationals from almost 85 countries can apply for H-2A visas. For example, the H-2B category has only been available to German applicants since 2016.

Currently, nationals of the following countries are eligible to apply for H-2A visa and / or H-2B visa (list in alphabetical order):

Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, The Kingdom of Eswatini, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kiribati, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mauritius, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia (no H-2A eligibility), Montenegro, Mozambique, Nauru, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Paraguay (no H-2B eligibility), The Philippines (no H-2A eligibility), Poland, Portugal, Romania, Saint Lucia, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Turkey, Tuvalu, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vanuatu

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security reserves the right to remove or add countries from the list at any time. The Federal Register lists the current H-2A and H-2B country list.

Attention: As a rule, USCIS only approves applications for nationals of those countries that are also on the list. In exceptional cases, however, USCIS may also approve applications from citizens of non-listed countries if it determines that this is of particular interest to the United States.

H-2B visas are only issued for one year maximum as they only entitle the holder to work for a very short period of time on a seasonal basis. Although there is the possibility in one-year increments to extend the H-2B visa to for a maximum of three years, however, these extension requests are examined very closely and are also frequently rejected.

Similar to the H-1B visa, the H-2B visa is also subject to a annual numerical limit: the H-2B Cap.

The number of H-2B visas is split into two H-2B caps:

H-2B Cap | 1st half of the year | max. 33,000 | start of work 10/01 - 03/31

H-2B Cap | 2nd half of the year | max. 33,000 | start of work 04/01 - 09/30

This means that for each US fiscal year there are currently 66,000 H-2B visas available, divided into 33,000 visas for foreign employees starting work from October 1 (first half of the year) and 33,000 visas for foreign employees starting work from April 1 (second half of the year).

In principle, applications for the first half of the year are submitted from June 1 of a given year and for the second half from January 1 of the following year.

Note: While unused H-2B visas from the first half of the year are allocated to the second half of the same fiscal year, unused H-2B visas from the second half of the year are not allocated to next fiscal year.

H-2A visas are numerically not limited.

Each year, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) first conducts the H-2B application round for the first six months of a US fiscal year. Once the USCIS receives sufficient petitions and the established cap on H-2B visas for the first half of a fiscal year is reached, any H-2B petitions received after that deadline that are subject to the cap and request a start date for employment prior to April 1 of a given year will be denied and returned to the respective petitioners.

Petitions for the second half of the fiscal year whose start date is on or after April 1 of a given year can only be submitted from January 1 of the following year.

H-2B applications excluded from the quota

Please note that there are H-2B applications that are exempt from the H-2B cap. For example, H-2B extension petitions will continue to be accepted by USCIS (even if the annual quota is exhausted).

Spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 are eligible for derivative H-4 visas upon application for the same period as principal applicants.

Spouses and children can attend private and public educational institutions with the H-4 visa. However, spouses of H-2B visa holders cannot obtain their own Employment Authorization Document (EAD) with the H-4 visa. Therefore, employment is generally not permitted, not even for children.

More information on the H-2B program is available at www.uscis.gov/h-2b.