DHS and DOL add 64,716 H-2B visas for FY2026

Validated finding · five-country-2010-20260922-v118-evidence-presentation-fix

CountryUnited States

Operative dateJanuary 30, 2026

CategoryWork

Policy toolCap quota

Affected groupAmerican businesses suffering or facing impending irreparable harm

Policy effect

The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, is exercising time-limited Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 authority to issue up to, but not more than, an additional 64,716 visas for the fiscal year, distributed across three allocations.

Conditions and exceptions

Validated condition or limit: The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, is exercising time-limited Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 authority to issue up to, but not more than, an additional 64,716 visas for the fiscal year, distributed across three allocations.

Official source excerpt

Quoted verbatim from the official source below. Ellipses indicate omitted text.

The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, is exercising time-limited Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 authority to issue up to, but not more than, an additional 64,716 visas for the fiscal year. … All of these supplemental visas will be available only to those American businesses that are suffering or will suffer impending irreparable harm, i.e., those facing permanent and severe financial loss, as attested by the employer. … These supplemental visas will be distributed in three allocations based on the petitioner's start date of need through the end of the fiscal year: (1) 18,490 immediately available visas limited to returning workers, that is, aliens who were issued an H-2B visa or otherwise granted H-2B status in FY 2023, 2024, or 2025, and who will be available for eligible employers with a need for workers to begin work between January 1, 2026 through March 31, 2026. Employers must file these petitions no later than 14 days after the second half of the statutory cap is reached; (2) 27,736 visas, plus any unused visas from the first allocation, limited to returning workers, that is, aliens who ( printed page 5041) were issued an H-2B visa or otherwise granted H-2B status in FY 2023, 2024, or 2025, and who will be available for eligible employers with a need for workers to begin work between April 1, 2026 and April 30, 2026. Employers must file these petitions no earlier than 15 days after the second half of the statutory cap [1] is reached; and (3) 18,490 visas, plus any unused visas from the first or second allocations, for aliens who will be available for eligible employers with a need for workers to begin work between May 1, 2026 and September 30, 2026. These petitions are exempt from the returning worker requirement. Employers must file these petitions no earlier than 45 days after the second half of the statutory cap is reached.

Federal Registerhttps://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/02/03/2026-02131/exercise-of-time-limited-authority-to-increase-the-fiscal-year-2026-numerical-limitation-for-the; https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/h-2b-temporary-non-agricultural-workersOpen official source

Retrieved from https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/02/03/2026-02131/exercise-of-time-limited-authority-to-increase-the-fiscal-year-2026-numerical-limitation-for-the

Review method

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite extraction with independent Gemini 3.8 Flash verification

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DHS and DOL add 64,716 H-2B visas for FY2026

Policy effect

Conditions and exceptions

Official source excerpt

Review method

Other United States changes operative in 2026