U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirmed on May 12 that it has received enough petitions to exhaust the second tranche of supplemental H-2B visas for FY 2026, a pool of 27,736 numbers reserved for returning workers with job start-dates in April. The window opened April 3 and effectively closed within three weeks, underscoring unrelenting demand from seasonal industries. The supplemental visas, created under a joint DHS-DOL temporary final rule, added up to 64,716 extra H-2B numbers to the statutory annual cap of 66,000.
![USCIS Closes Second Supplemental H-2B Cap, Opens Final Filing Window for Summer 2026]()
For employers scrambling to secure the right seasonal talent, VisaHQ can guide HR teams through every step of the H-2B process—from compiling supporting evidence to monitoring real-time cap updates—and keep applications on track before the quota closes. Explore tailored assistance at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
With the April group now spoken for, employers must pivot to the third and final allocation—18,490 visas for positions beginning May 1 – Sept 30. Importantly, the last tranche drops the “returning-worker” requirement, widening eligibility but raising competition. Hospitality, landscaping and seafood processing companies are expected to drive filing volumes. Employers should obtain a certified temporary labor certification before submitting Form I-129 and note that petitions must align with summer start-dates; requests for April will be rejected. USCIS will post real-time updates on its H-2B cap-count webpage, and practitioners anticipate that the remaining quota could disappear by early June. For corporate mobility teams, the development means that JIT (just-in-time) staffing plans for resorts, golf courses and amusement parks need contingency layers such as J-1 interns or third-party subcontractors. Employers that miss the cap risk labor shortages during the peak travel season and may incur premium-processing fees or relocation costs to move workers between sites. Congress is again under pressure to make the supplemental numbers permanent or raise the base cap, but bipartisan talks remain stalled. In the interim, companies should prepare evidence of irreparable harm for any late-season emergency allocations that DHS may authorize if economic indicators worsen.
For employers scrambling to secure the right seasonal talent, VisaHQ can guide HR teams through every step of the H-2B process—from compiling supporting evidence to monitoring real-time cap updates—and keep applications on track before the quota closes. Explore tailored assistance at https://www.visahq.com/united-states/
With the April group now spoken for, employers must pivot to the third and final allocation—18,490 visas for positions beginning May 1 – Sept 30. Importantly, the last tranche drops the “returning-worker” requirement, widening eligibility but raising competition. Hospitality, landscaping and seafood processing companies are expected to drive filing volumes. Employers should obtain a certified temporary labor certification before submitting Form I-129 and note that petitions must align with summer start-dates; requests for April will be rejected. USCIS will post real-time updates on its H-2B cap-count webpage, and practitioners anticipate that the remaining quota could disappear by early June. For corporate mobility teams, the development means that JIT (just-in-time) staffing plans for resorts, golf courses and amusement parks need contingency layers such as J-1 interns or third-party subcontractors. Employers that miss the cap risk labor shortages during the peak travel season and may incur premium-processing fees or relocation costs to move workers between sites. Congress is again under pressure to make the supplemental numbers permanent or raise the base cap, but bipartisan talks remain stalled. In the interim, companies should prepare evidence of irreparable harm for any late-season emergency allocations that DHS may authorize if economic indicators worsen.
