USCIS Reaches The H-2B Cap Count For The First Half Of FY 2014

18 Mar 2014

US Citizenship and Immigration Services has received a maximum number of H2B visa petitions that Congress mandated for the first half of the 2014 fiscal year. 14^th March, 2014 is the final date to receive new H-2B visa application corresponding to an employment date start earlier to 1^st April, 2014.

An H-2B visa is a non-immigrant work visa for foreign nationals which is a non-agricultural work visa, and is a seasonal job offer to work and live in the US temporarily. There is a cap or statutory numerical limit on  H-2B visa, that are issued to the aliens. At present, Congress has set a cap of 66,000 per fiscal year, with 33,000 of visas allocated to the first half of the fiscal year and another 33,000 for the second half of the fiscal year.

The final acceptance date is determined when USCIS receives enough cap of H-2B petitions, i.e., 33,000 applications for the first half of fiscal year 2014. There is no carry over spots from the 1^st half to the 2^nd half of fiscal year 2014.

After reaching the maximum numerical limit or cap, USCIS will not accept new H-2B petitions that:

• Ask for an employment that start before 1^st April, 2014
• Application received after 14^th March, 2014.

Some petitions are exempt from the mandated cap, and US Citizenship and Immigration Services will still accept H-2B visa petitions. Following are the applications that are exempted from the cap:

• The Present H-2B workforce in the US, who want to lengthen their period of stay and if possible change their employers or change the terms and conditions of their employment.
• Supervisors of fish roe processing, Fish roe technician, and Fish roe processors and
• From 28^th November 2009 to 31^st December 2014, performing work labour or services in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and/or Guam.