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Pennsylvania Landscape & Nursery Association Partners with másLabor
PLNA is pleased to announce a new preferred provider relationship with másLabor, the nation's leading provider of comprehensive services for employers participating in the H-2A and H-2B nonimmigrant visa programs.
H-2 Seasonality: Proving your Need
All prospective H-2 employers must provide a “burden of proof” to ensure they are either temporary or seasonal in nature, depending on their desired program. This includes providing a justification for why they need workers when they do, but also, why they do not in the off season. For the programs, temporary and seasonal have a maximum of 10 months, per employer, geography, and occupation.
Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRMs)
The comment period for both of the following Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRMs) concluded last quarter: H-2A NPRM ETA-2023-0003 and H-2 NPRM USCIS-2023-0012. Industry insiders have indicated that both agencies are pursuing an aggressive timeline and intend to push forward with a Final Rule sometime in 2024.
USCIS Final Rule
On January 31st, 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released its Final Rule regarding fee increases for H-2A, H-2B, and immigrant visa petitions. These new fees will go into effect April 1, 2024 and are applicable to all petitions received by USCIS on or after that date.
másLabor Answers Your H-2B Questions
H-2B questions and answers from másLabor’s webinar on January 18
H-2B Visa Cap Relief Announcement and End-of-Season Reminders
On November 3, 2023, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced its intent to release the maximum number of visas permitted by Congress this fiscal year – a total of 64,716 visas. Of these, 44,716 visas will be allocated to returning workers*, with an additional 20,000 earmarked to workers from an expanded list of Northern Triangle (NT) countries, which now include El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Ecuador.
Three Critical Things you Should Know About the H-2B Program
The H-2B visa program is capped at 66,000 visas per year—33,000 for workers who begin employment in the first half of the fiscal year and 33,000 for workers beginning employment in the second half.
