H-2B Nonimmigrants

The H-2B Program

The H-2B non-agricultural temporary worker program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs.

What is the H-2B Cap? 

There is a statutory numerical limit, or "cap," on the total number aliens who may be issued a visa or otherwise provided H-2B status (including through a change of status) during a fiscal year.

Currently, the H-2B cap set by Congress is 66,000 per fiscal year, with 33,000 to be allocated for employment beginning in the 1st half of the fiscal year (October 1 - March 31) and 33,000 to be allocated for employment beginning in the 2nd half of the fiscal year (April 1 - September 30).

DACA Renewal

Since the launch of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, more than 560,000 individuals have received DACA.

DACA is a discretionary determination to defer removal action against an individual. Individuals in DACA will be able to remain in the United States and apply for employment authorization for a period of two years.

It is important to note that individuals who have not continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, are ineligible for DACA.

The first DACA approvals will begin to expire in September 2014. To avoid a lapse in the period of deferral and employment authorization, individuals must file renewal requests before the expiration of their current period of DACA. USCIS encourages requestors to submit their renewal request approximately 120 days (four months) before their current period of deferred action expires. Individuals who have not requested DACA previously, but meet the criteria established, may also request deferral for the first time.

Individuals may request DACA renewal if they continue to meet the initial criteria and these additional guidelines:

Proposed Rule to Extend Employment Authorization to Spouses of Certain H-1B Workers

Under existing regulations, DHS does not extend employment authorization to dependents (also known as H-4 nonimmigrants) of H-1B nonimmigrant workers. The change proposed by DHS, would allow H-4 dependent spouses of certain H-1B nonimmigrant workers to request employment authorization, as long as the H-1B worker has already started the process of seeking lawful permanent residence through employment.

Eligible individuals would include H-4 dependent spouses of principal H-1B workers who:

Arrival/Departure History Now Available

Customs and Border Protection launched a new webpage on May 1 that offers nonimmigrant U.S. visitors access to their I-94 arrival/departure record and their arrival/departure history.

The new CBP webpage allows nonimmigrant travelers to access arrival/departure records going back five years from the request date.

This electronic travel-history function means that travelers may no longer need to file Freedom of Information Act requests to receive their arrival/departure history, greatly speeding their process.