The United States government has opened the application portal for H-2B visas, allowing U.S. employers to submit requests for temporary non-agricultural foreign workers for job roles that would start on October 1, 2025.
According to a public notice from the Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), the application window runs for three days from 12:00 a.m. ET on July 3 to 11:59 p.m. ET on July 5, 2025.
The H-2B visa program allows U.S. businesses to temporarily employ foreign workers in roles such as hospitality, landscaping, construction, and other non-farm services, especially during seasonal or peak-load periods when local labor is insufficient.
The H-2B visa has an annual numerical cap of 66,000, split equally across two halves of the fiscal year:
Successful applicants under the program are permitted to work in the U.S. for up to three years, after which they must exit the country and remain outside for at least three months before reapplying.
To qualify under the H-2B program, U.S. employers must:
Only applications submitted during the official July 3–5 window will be considered for the October 1, 2025, start date.
The OFLC has confirmed that all submissions received within the window will be subjected to a randomized selection process, not processed in order of receipt. This method was adopted in a regulation issued March 4, 2019, and aims to ensure fairness amid growing demand for limited visa slots.
Employers are further cautioned to submit only one application per job role to avoid disqualification or unnecessary delays.
While applications now being received are for FY 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) have announced the release of 64,716 supplemental H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2025 to address ongoing labor shortages across critical sectors.