History of the H-2B Visa. Temporary International Workers have been issued visas to work at US Companies for the last 10 years under the non-immigrant visa category known as H-2B. In 1990 Congress allotted 66,000 visas to this category for temporary Workers for all occupational areas. In March of 2004, for the first time in the history of the use of the H-2B visa, the visa cap was reached. Companies that had seasons that began in the spring or summer did not have an opportunity to utilize any of the visa allocation. In 2005, Congress divided the allocation into two parts, fall and spring. This benefited Companies with spring and summer seasons, such as summer resorts and landscaping companies to also have an opportunity of successfully petition for H-2B workers.

The H-2B Visa. This temporary work visa category is widely used by Companies in industries that have reoccurring labor needs that are less than a year in duration but historically consistent each year to enable the Company to effectively plan to hire Workers in this category every year. Temporary Workers are approved for visas for positions in the US where US Workers are not unavailable. International Workers are able to gain advantages from their temporary assignments in the US to enhance their careers, to gain valuable work and cultural experience in another country, to earn money for themselves or their families that they can take back or send to their home country, and in some cases, improve their English language fluency. At the conclusion of the pre-determined work period, the Worker must return back to their home country, unless they receive an extension. After the Worker returns home, he or she can reapply to return to the US for additional terms.

Thousands of H-2B visas have been issued during the last ten years for US Companies. Every year, 66,000 visas are available to Companies throughout the US for qualified Workers for temporary positions. A large number of US Companies in many diverse industries and service areas currently use H2B Workers, to meet labor needs in occupational areas such as general labor, manufacturing, construction, landscaping, lumber, food service and processing, restaurant and hospitality.

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