USCIS, June 3, 2021 "Under the recently announced H-2B supplemental cap temporary final rule, USCIS has received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 16,000 H-2B visas made available for returning workers only. We continue to accept... Read More
To understand what is wrong with the DHS/DOL Joint Temporary Final Rule adding 22,000 H-2B visas to the quota (6,000 reserved for nationals of the "Northern Triangle" countries of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala), see my July 25, 2017 Law360... Read More
This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 05/25/2021 "The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, is exercising his time-limited Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 authority and increasing the... Read More
DHS, Apr. 20, 2021 " ... In light of increased labor demands, DHS is announcing a supplemental increase of 22,000 visas for the H-2B Temporary Non-Agricultural Worker program. The additional visas will be made available in the coming months via... Read More
DOL, Apr. 1, 2021 "The Department of Labor recognizes that obtaining a reliable workforce is crucial to meeting the labor needs of American businesses. We also recognize how important it is to put Americans back to work. On Dec. 27, 2020, the... Read More
USCIS, Feb. 24, 2021 "U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the second half of fiscal year (FY) 2021. Feb. 12, 2021, was the final receipt date for new cap-subject... Read More
David J. Bier, Feb. 16, 2021 "Since 1952, American employers have hired H-2B foreign guest workers to fill seasonal or temporary jobs that U.S. workers have not taken. Onerous rules kept participation low until the late 1990s, but as more Americans... Read More
State Department, Jan. 28, 2021 "H-2A and certain H-2B travelers covered by the Presidential Proclamation of January 25, 2021 titled Proclamation on the Suspension of Entry as Immigrants and Nonimmigrants of Certain Additional Persons Who Pose... Read More
USCIS, Jan. 12, 2021 "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of State (DOS), have announced the list of countries whose nationals are eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs in 2021. The... Read More
DOLETA, Jan. 5, 2021 "OFLC Conducts Randomization Process on H-2B Applications Submitted Requesting an April 1, 2021, Work Start Date The Office of Foreign Labor Certification has completed the randomization process to randomly assign all H-2B... Read More
Hedging bets, simultaneous publication of a " direct final rule " and a proposed rule on Jan. 4, 2021: "The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor (DOL) are jointly issuing this direct final rule to extend DOL’s... Read More
DOL, Sept. 16, 2020 "After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Weaver Racing Inc. and owner George R. Weaver paid a total of $425,000 in court-ordered back wages, liquidated damages and civil penalties... Read More
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 94 / Thursday, May 14, 2020 "As a result of disruptions and uncertainty to the U.S. economy and international travel caused by the global novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency, the Department... Read More
Jason Blevins, The Colorado Sun, Apr. 14, 2020 "When Gov. Jared Polis ordered the state’s ski areas to close on March 14, he also launched Ana Panessi into a frantic race to get home. It was a race she did not win. “So many people... Read More
DHS, Apr. 2, 2020 "To clear up various misreporting – DHS’s rule on the H-2B cap is on hold pending review due to present economic circumstances. No additional H-2B visas will be released until further notice. Per the statute, H-2B... Read More