H-2 Visa Rules and Current DHS Requirements for H-2A and H-2B

The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services kept in place a 2025 modernization rule for H-2A and H-2B visas as employers in March 2026 confronted a reached H-2B cap, shifting supplemental allocations and a House proposal that could roll back some worker protections.

The programs remain central for U.S. employers seeking seasonal labor in agriculture and non-agricultural industries, but the pressure points differ. H-2A remains uncapped, while the H-2B statutory ceiling of 66,000 visas has tightened hiring for businesses seeking workers for the second half of fiscal year 2026.

USCIS has already reached the second-half H-2B cap for fiscal year 2026, with March 10, 2026, serving as the cutoff date for new cap-subject petitions. That cap covers jobs with start dates from April through September, and it is split evenly from the annual total, leaving 33,000 slots for that half of the fiscal year.

The January 17, 2025 rule introduced broader worker safeguards, process changes and added flexibility in both programs. As of March 2026, those protections remain in effect even as lawmakers weigh an appropriations rider that could defund parts of the rule and weaken standards that took effect last year.

How H-2A and H-2B Work

H-2A covers temporary or seasonal agricultural work such as crop harvesting and livestock care. H-2B applies to temporary non-agricultural jobs in sectors such as hospitality, landscaping and seafood processing, where employers must show a one-time, seasonal, peak-load or intermittent need through Department of Labor certification.

Both programs require employers to show that U.S. workers are not available, willing and qualified for the jobs offered. They also require foreign workers to perform temporary labor, with H-2 status limited to three consecutive years, although a 60-day uninterrupted absence resets that clock.

Major Changes in the 2025 Rule

One of the broadest changes in the 2025 rule removed the “Eligible Countries List,” allowing employers to hire from any country unless DHS designates otherwise for security or program integrity reasons. Older 2023-2024 country lists still appear in some guidance, but the current rule no longer uses that restriction.

Employers now face stricter obligations on fees, transportation, records and inspections. They cannot charge workers for visa fees, recruitment costs or penalties tied to the H-2 process, and violations can trigger mandatory denial periods of one year for first offenses and four years for repeat offenses.

The rule also expanded oversight. USCIS conducts mandatory and discretionary site visits, reviews records and interviews workers, including interviews without an employer present, and non-cooperation can lead to denial or revocation of a petition.

Workers who report violations gained added protection under the 2025 framework. If retaliation follows, they may qualify for “extraordinary circumstances” extensions or status changes, judged from the worker’s viewpoint.

Return travel rules changed too. H-2A employers now must match H-2B standards by covering reasonable transportation costs home if a petition is revoked or work ends early.

Another shift was linguistic but tied to enforcement. The rule replaced “abscondment” with descriptions of unreported absences, reflecting that a worker may have valid reasons for not reporting to a job site.

Political Pressure and Pending Proposals

Those safeguards now face political pressure. A proposed House Homeland Security appropriations rider would defund parts of the 2025 rule, including enhanced portability, green card pathways and parts of the expanded scrutiny of violations, a move that could push the system back toward pre-2025 standards if enacted.

The same House rider would also move carnival workers from H-2B to uncapped P visas while still subjecting them to H-2B rules. That proposal remains pending.

At the same time, the Department of Labor has reopened part of the administrative machinery behind H-2B. DOL announced a 60-day comment period on March 17, 2026, for revisions to H-2B Form ETA-9142B, a sign that certification procedures may change again.

Filing and Certification Process

The filing process still runs through two agencies. Employers must first obtain temporary labor certification from DOL and then file a petition with USCIS, which now uses a revised Form I-129 that asks about fees, violations and recruitment.

For H-2B employers seeking workers for the second half of fiscal year 2026, the DOL application window opened January 1, 2026, for start dates between April 1 and September 30. Applications filed from January 1 through January 3 went through randomization, with Group A filling the 33,000 cap.

After DOL approval, which remains valid for 6 months, employers file with USCIS within 60 days of the date of need. Approved workers then apply at U.S. consulates and may enter the United States up to 10 days early.

Post-entry duties continue to fall heavily on employers. H-2A employers must provide free or equivalent housing, advance transportation costs and meet the three-fourths work guarantee, while wage rules require payment at or above Adverse Effect Wage Rates or prevailing wages.

H-2A does not face a numerical cap, but it remains under administrative review. DOL processes more than 300,000 H-2A-related matters annually, and proposed form revisions under OMB 1205-0466 entered a 60-day comment period as of September 10, 2025.

Wage and filing rules in H-2A also changed. Job orders posted after September 30, 2025, use a new Adverse Effect Wage Rate methodology.

The H-2B Cap Squeeze

The sharper stress has fallen on H-2B, where employer demand has outrun supply. The 66,000 visas available each fiscal year are divided evenly, with 33,000 reserved for October through March and another 33,000 for April through September.

That second-half allotment was exhausted on March 10, 2026. Employers filing after that date for new cap-subject workers cannot use the regular H-2B quota for spring and summer start dates.

Supplemental visas offer some relief, but the numbers have shifted. An initial authorization allowed up to 64,716 supplemental H-2B visas, including 27,736 for returning workers with H-2B experience in fiscal years 2023, 2024 or 2025 for jobs starting April 1 through April 30, and 18,490 open to all workers for jobs starting May 1 through September 30.

That picture changed again on December 31, 2025, when cuts were announced reducing the total to 35,000, a drop of about 50%, with priority for industries including seafood, forestry and hospitality. A final rule is still pending in the Federal Register.

A separate House proposal would move in the opposite direction. By exempting employers’ peak past certifications from 2021 through 2025, the rider could add about 186,342 uncapped visas and push the total to 252,342, nearly quadrupling the statutory base.

Those conflicting numbers show how unsettled the program remains. Seasonal employers are navigating a base cap that has already been reached, a supplemental pool that may be narrower than first expected, and legislation that could either slash protections or sharply expand access to labor.

Labor shortages, early filing and seasonal spikes have driven the rush. For employers in hospitality, landscaping, seafood processing and other H-2B-dependent sectors, the cap squeeze raises the prospect of higher wages and reduced operating capacity during peak periods.

Worker Mobility and Compliance

Workers have gained more mobility under the 2025 rule, at least for now. The framework gives them a 10-day period before visa validity begins, 30 days after expiration and 60 days after termination or revocation to search for a new job or leave the country, although that 60-day period does not include work authorization.

Portability has become one of the most watched changes. Workers can switch employers once a new petition is filed, without waiting for approval, and H-2A portability does not require E-Verify.

The rule also clarified that pursuing permanent status does not automatically jeopardize temporary status. Filing labor certifications or immigrant petitions does not void H-2 classification under the current framework.

For employers, that mix of flexibility and enforcement has raised the compliance stakes. Recordkeeping, wage accuracy, recruiter oversight and fee prohibitions have become central to keeping petitions alive, particularly as USCIS expands audits and inspections.

For workers, the changes reduce the risk of debt tied to recruitment and visa processing and offer more room to leave abusive conditions. The system now gives them more tools to report misconduct and seek another employer without the same dependence that shaped earlier seasons.

DHS estimated in 2025 that the modernization rule would cost $16.9-$22.6 million over 10 years in forms and training, but tied those costs to gains in mobility and program integrity. That calculation now sits alongside a labor market where fiscal year 2026 restrictions could leave industries with about 30,000 fewer workers than under previous supplemental allocations.

The next steps will likely come on two tracks, one administrative and one political. DOL’s March 17, 2026 comment period on H-2B forms could alter certification procedures, while Congress weighs whether to preserve or strip back the worker safeguards that now define the programs.

Until then, the system is running on rules that expanded rights but narrowed certainty. Employers seeking H-2A and H-2B labor must file early, document every step and watch the supplemental visa pool closely, while workers enter the 2026 season with more mobility than before and a labor market where every cap number matters.