DHS Streamlines H-2A Filings for Agricultural Employers Under New Rule

The Department of Homeland Security moved to speed up farm hiring on October 2, 2025, issuing a final rule that lets U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services start reviewing certain petitions in the H-2A visa program before the Department of Labor finishes approving a required certification. The change applies nationwide and targets growers who rely on seasonal help, especially during short harvest windows when delays can spoil crops.

Under the rule, USCIS may begin processing after the Labor Department issues a notice that it has accepted an employer’s application for a Temporary Labor Certification, though no petition will be approved until the certification itself is granted.

Purpose and government rationale

Officials called the change a practical fix meant to shave days or weeks from a process long viewed as too slow for time-sensitive farm work. The final rule’s stated goals are:

• Help employers line up workers sooner.
• Preserve the labor safeguards that protect pay and conditions for U.S. workers.
• Keep the Labor Department’s certification as the core check confirming no able, willing, and qualified U.S. workers are available and that hiring foreign workers won’t undercut local wages.

The rule does not change those standards — only the point at which USCIS can start its review.

New filing path: Form I-129H2A

A key feature is a new, streamlined filing path for certain cases using Form I-129H2A.

• This form is designed for H-2A petitions with unnamed beneficiaries, where employers request permission to bring a specified number of workers without listing each person.
• The rule requires employers to file that petition electronically through a USCIS online account and to include the Labor Department’s ETA case number when submitting it.
• USCIS will reject paper filings of Form I-129H2A.

USCIS says the electronic-first approach should reduce common back-and-forth errors and speed intake.

Initial rollout and eligibility limits

At launch, the new filing track is limited:

• Initially open only to employers filing for unnamed workers and not filing with Form G-28 (the notice that an attorney or accredited representative is appearing in the case).
• USCIS plans to broaden access in the coming weeks to include petitions with named workers and those that include a G-28, but no firm date is set in the rule text.
• Employers who want to keep filing by paper must continue using the longstanding Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. Those paper cases will not receive the early-processing benefit tied to a Labor Department acceptance notice.

How the timing change affects the H-2A process

H-2A hiring involves multiple time-sensitive steps:

1. Recruit domestically.
2. File for a Temporary Labor Certification with the Department of Labor (DOL).
3. Submit an H-2A petition to USCIS.
4. Once USCIS approves, workers can seek visas and travel.

Under the new rule, steps 2 and 3 can overlap: USCIS can begin review after DOL acknowledges it has accepted the certification application, but final approvals wait for the certification decision. For growers, front-loading federal review could mean petition approvals follow quickly once the certification is granted, better aligning with planting and harvest schedules.

Worker protections and oversight

Officials emphasized that worker protections remain intact:

• The certification process still tests the labor market and sets required wages to protect U.S. workers.
• The Department of Labor maintains oversight of those terms.
• USCIS will only grant final petition approvals after receiving a completed certification.

The headline for employers is speed; for domestic workers, the standards stay intact.

VisaVerge.com reports that agricultural stakeholders have long urged the government to reduce bottlenecks without weakening safeguards, and the new timing rule appears to respond to that request.

Electronic filing details and matching requirements

USCIS highlights several administrative points for the new pathway:

• Electronic filing lowers error rates, shortens intake, and enables more predictable case tracking.
• Employers filing Form I-129H2A must:
  • Submit the form through a USCIS account.
  • Include the Labor Department’s ETA case number so USCIS can match the petition to the corresponding certification file.
• Cases that don’t meet those criteria will not get early review.
• Paper petitions filed on Form I-129 should expect timelines similar to previous seasons.

Impact on legal representatives and law firms

Legal representatives are watching closely:

• The early rollout excludes filings with a Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative.
• Many law firms will likely wait until USCIS opens the new lane to represented cases.
• USCIS said it will expand eligibility to named-beneficiary filings and G-28 cases in the weeks after the rule takes effect, potentially widening adoption across larger farm operations that frequently file with counsel.

Until expansion, employers must choose between:

• The electronic Form I-129H2A for unnamed workers without representation, or
• The traditional paper Form I-129 route.

Expected benefits and caveats for agriculture

Agricultural groups say the timing flexibility could help stabilize crews during peak demand in fruit, vegetable, and dairy operations that cannot pause production.

• Because H-2A hiring has grown sharply over the past decade, even modest processing-time savings could affect thousands of petitions.
• VisaVerge.com analysis suggests that aligning USCIS review with DOL’s acceptance notice may help reduce last-minute scrambles that cause costly overtime or lost yield when workers arrive late.

However, the ultimate pace of approvals still depends on how quickly the Department of Labor issues final certifications.

Effective date and where to find the rule

The rule took effect immediately on October 2, 2025, so employers with accepted certification applications can already use the early review option. Government sites have begun updating guidance.

• The final rule is published in the Federal Register under the title “Facilitating Earlier Filing of Certain Electronically Submitted H-2A Petitions”.
• USCIS information on the H-2A worker category is on its program page at “USCIS H-2A Program”.
• Farmers seeking broader background can consult “Farmers.gov H-2A Visa Program”, which outlines employer steps before filing.

Forms and practical notes

• For the new electronic path: Form I-129H2A is required and must be filed online. Paper filings of that form will be rejected.
• For outside the new path: continue using the standard Form I-129 on USCIS’s site for paper filings and cases not covered by the new process.
• For represented cases: continue to use Form G-28 as the notice of record for attorneys or accredited representatives.

These forms and federal notices shape how the United States manages seasonal farm hiring across agencies, with the updated timing rule intended to better align the Department of Labor’s market checks and USCIS’s petition review.

Practical outlook and final takeaways

In practice, the policy will be tested quickly as fall harvests and early winter planting overlap in warmer states. If USCIS can push petitions to the brink of approval while DOL reviews the certification, the gap between certification and petition approval could narrow.

Employers will still need to plan for consular interviews and worker travel, but earlier federal processing may provide a more predictable runway.

Key final points to remember:

• Electronic filing of Form I-129H2A is required.
• Paper filings of Form I-129H2A will be rejected.
• USCIS will not approve any petition until after DOL approves the corresponding certification.