Dec. 21 (UPI) — The Biden administration will make additional temporary worker visas available in the winter for the first time, the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor announced Monday.
The agencies issued a statement announcing 20,000 H-2B temporary non-agricultural worker visas will be set aside for U.S. employers looking to hire additional workers on or before March 31, 2022.
The addition marks the first time that DHS has made additional H-2B visas available in the first half of the fiscal year, with the visas coming in addition to 22,000 added in April.
“At a time of record job growth, additional H-2B visas will help to fuel our nation’s historic economic recovery,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said.
The visas include 13,500 for returning workers who received an H-2B visa or otherwise obtained H-2B status during one of the past three fiscal years and another 6,500 that will allow nationals of Haiti as well as Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador to bypass the returning worker requirement.
“DHS is taking action to protect American businesses and create opportunities that will expand lawful pathways to the United States for workers from the Northern Triangle and countries in Haiti,” Mayorkas said.
The agency added that it intends propose a separate rule seeking to “modernize and reform” the H-2B program.
