The H-2B visa program grew to a record high of 156,000 in 2022—and will reach 168,000 in 2023—more than two-and-a-half times the annual cap: Estimated number of H-2B workers employed in the United States, fiscal years 2015–2022, and projected for 2023
| Year | New H-2B workers | H-2B extensions | New visas issued | New visas issued | H-2B statutory cap | H-2B cap + supplemental cap | H-2B cap + supplemental cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 70,179 | 6,190 | 69,684 | 66,000 | |||
| 2016 | 85,202 | 5,237 | 84,627 | 66,000 | |||
| 2017 | 84,037 | 7,352 | 83,600 | 66,000 | 81,000 | ||
| 2018 | 84,752 | 9,773 | 83,774 | 66,000 | 81,000 | ||
| 2019 | 98,819 | 11,359 | 97,623 | 66,000 | 96,000 | ||
| 2020 | 65,716 | 15,087 | 61,865 | 66,000 | |||
| 2021 | 97,268 | 20,086 | 95,053 | 66,000 | 88,000 | ||
| 2022 | 126,426 | 29,504 | 124,644 | 124,644 | 66,000 | 121,000 | |
| 2023 | 136,000 | 32,000 | 134,000 | 66,000 | 130,716 |
Notes: “New H-2B workers” represents the number of new H-2B workers estimated by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). “H-2B extensions” represents USCIS petitions for H-2B workers approved for continuing employment (i.e., visa extensions or extensions of status), as reported in the USCIS H-2B Employer Data Hub. “New visas issued” is the number of H-2B visas issued by the State Department. Projected totals for fiscal year 2023 are based on the statutory and supplemental caps for 2023, and 2022 data on new H-2B workers and petitions approved for continuing employment (see text of EPI report from August 2022).
“New H-2B workers” represents the number of new H-2B workers estimated by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which USCIS calculates by adding the number of visas issued for H-2B workers by the State Department to the number of new H-2B workers who were not issued visas because they adjusted to H-2B status while already present inside the United States, and also adding the number of H-2B workers who were admitted to the United States but did not require a visa because they are Canadian nationals. (That information is published in USCIS’s annual Characteristics of H-2B Nonagricultural Temporary Workers reports.) Where there was a discrepancy between the number of visas issued by the State Department as reported in the Characteristics reports and the State Department data published at their Nonimmigrant Visa Statistics page, the State Department’s data were used. “H-2B extensions” represents USCIS petitions for H-2B workers approved for continuing employment (i.e., visa extensions or extensions of status), which also includes approvals for changing employers or job conditions, as reported in the USCIS H-2B Employer Data Hub. The line labeled “New visas issued” represents the number of H-2B visas issued by the State Department in the corresponding fiscal year. The H-2B statutory cap (light blue line) is set in law at 66,000 new H-2B visas per year. The line labeled “H-2B cap + supplemental cap” is the number of H-2B visas authorized in the statutory cap plus the number of supplemental visas authorized by Congress and the executive branch for the corresponding fiscal year. The “Projected” column shows projected totals for fiscal year 2023 based on the statutory and supplemental caps for 2023 and 2022 data on new H-2B workers and petitions approved for continuing employment
Source: EPI analysis of data from United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, H-2B Employer Data Hub, fiscal year 2015–2022 data files; Characteristics of H-2B Nonagricultural Temporary Workers reports for fiscal years 2015–2022, available at the USCIS Reports and Studies page; and U.S. Department of State, “Nonimmigrant Visa Statistics” (see PDF files for tables listed under “Nonimmigrant Worldwide Issuance and Refusal Data by Visa Category” and “Nonimmigrant Visas by Individual Class of Admission” for fiscal years 2015–2022).