On May 22, the Department of Homeland Security released its temporary final rule that provides an additional 22,000 visas for the H-2B Temporary Non-Agricultural Worker program, for the second half of fiscal year 2021 (April 1 – Sept. 30). The rule opens the application process for visas May 25, and applications are considered in the order they are received, so employers interested in obtaining visas are urged to apply now.
Of the 22,000 additional visas, 16,000 will be available to returning H-2B workers who worked in the U.S. during at least one of the prior three fiscal years (2018, 2019 or 2020). The remaining 6,000 visas will be reserved initially for individuals from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador and those individuals who are exempt from the returning worker requirement. If the 6,000 visas are not depleted by July 8, the unused visas will be made available to employers seeking H-2B workers regardless of the recipient’s home country.
DHS requires employers to comply with various recruitment requirements to hire individuals with H-2B visas. Also, employers must submit an attestation form stating their businesses likely will suffer irreparable harm if they cannot employ the requested H-2B workers before the end of the fiscal year, which is the same attestation that was required of H-2B employers for the past few years.
In addition, employers must comply with all applicable labor laws, which has been required in similar rules issued in previous years and now includes new COVID-related provisions.
The DHS action comes in response to pleas from NRCA and other business groups for the agency to provide additional visas given ongoing workforce shortages in roofing and other industries. On April 1, NRCA CEO Reid Ribble sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, urging him to move expeditiously to provide more visas to meet workforce demands.
To view the published rule in the Federal Register, click here.
