United States | H-2B visa processing times as of Sept. 20 show substantial decline in certified positions from August

Update on applications received for requested date of need from April 1, 2025 (fiscal year 2025 second half of the visa cap):

The Department of Labor reported that as of Sept. 20, a total of 8,945 cases were issued Final Decisions. Certified positions for this period were allocated for 549 workers (a substantial decline from last month’s report of 120,470 workers).

Update on applications received for requested date of need from Oct. 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026:

DOL reported that as of Sept. 20, a total of 2,908 cases were issued Final Decisions. Certified positions for this period were allocated for 50,225 workers.

H-2B Prevailing Wage Determination processing times:

As of Sept. 1, the number of remaining requests for H-2B visa PWD applications received in August 2025 was 3,159; those received in July were 326; and those received in June were 23.

These dates reflect the month and year in which applications were filed (request date) or submission date of the appeal request for Redeterminations or Center Director Review. The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) encourages employers to request a prevailing wage determination for the H-2B program at least 60 days before the date the determination is needed. For various reasons, OFLC may be completing the processing of applications filed prior to the month posted. Withdrawn and voided requests are excluded from the total, which may cause the numbers for previous months to fluctuate.

Additional Information: Per U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 64,716 supplemental H-2B visas were allocated for the entire fiscal year. Of that total, 5,000 visas were limited to May 15 through Sept. 30 start dates for returning workers who were issued H-2B visas or held H-2B status in FYs 2022, 2023 or 2024, regardless of country of nationality.

These late second half of FY 2025 petitions must have requested employment start dates from May 15 through Sept. 30, 2025.

Learn more about H-2B visas here.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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