By Gao Yun

Reuters reported on Friday, Jan. 30 that the Federal Register announced the Trump administration plans to issue approximately 65,000 additional H-2B seasonal worker visas for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026. These visas will be available to employers facing serious financial risk due to a lack of domestic labor.

This number is nearly double the usual annual H-2B visa cap of 66,000, highlighting the federal government’s attention to labor shortages in certain industries. The visas primarily serve sectors such as construction, hospitality, landscaping, and seafood.

In fact, both during President Biden’s administration and at certain points in Trump’s first term (2017–2021), the government temporarily increased the H-2B visa quota in specific years.

Employers in hotels, construction, and similar industries have long called for higher visa limits, especially after Trump’s tougher immigration enforcement led some companies to report severe labor shortages.

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However, groups opposed to immigration expansion have objected, arguing that increasing guest worker visas would suppress wages for U.S. workers and threaten domestic employment.

At the same time, the Trump administration raised the threshold for hiring foreign employees in the tech sector under the H-1B visa program, introducing a new application fee of up to $100,000.

A Chinese national holds a Chinese Passport after being stamped to enter Cambodia after fleeing Vietnam on May 16, 2014 at the Bavet border crossing, Cambodia. (Image: Omar Havana/Getty Images)

Who is eligible for H-2B nonimmigrant status?

According to the U.S. government website, applicants for H-2B nonimmigrant status must meet several basic conditions:

  1. Labor shortage: Applicants must demonstrate that there are not enough U.S. workers who are able, willing, qualified, and immediately available to perform the temporary work.
  2. No adverse effect on U.S. workers: Employing H-2B foreign workers must not negatively affect the wages or working conditions of U.S. workers performing similar jobs.
  3. Temporary nature of demand: The need for services or labor must be temporary, regardless of whether the position itself is defined as “temporary.”
  1. One-time occurrence
    Conditions include:
  1. Seasonal need
    The employer must demonstrate that the services or labor:
  1. Peak load need
    Conditions include:
  1. Intermittent need
    Conditions include:
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