USCIS says H-2B cap for first half of FY 2027 has been reached

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has reached the H-2B cap for the first half of fiscal year 2027, meaning the agency will no longer accept new petitions for workers seeking start dates before April 1, 2027. The announcement matters for employers that depend on temporary nonagricultural labor during the busiest part of the year.

The H-2B program allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers for temporary nonagricultural jobs when there are not enough domestic workers available. The annual cap is split into two halves, with one allocation for jobs beginning from Oct. 1 through March 31 and another for the remainder of the fiscal year. USCIS said the first-half limit has now been met for fiscal year 2027.

The agency’s cap announcement follows a long-standing structure in federal immigration law that limits the number of H-2B workers who can be granted status each fiscal year. In practice, the first-half allotment is especially important for employers in sectors such as hospitality, landscaping and other seasonal industries that often rely on temporary staffing.

What employers can expect next

USCIS has said that H-2B petitions seeking employment start dates before April 1, 2027, will not be accepted once the cap is reached. Petitions for work beginning on or after that date remain part of the second-half cap period, though employers still must meet all filing and eligibility requirements. The agency did not provide additional details in the brief announcement about how quickly the second-half cap may be reached.

For employers and workers, the cap can shape hiring timelines months in advance, especially in industries that use the visa category to fill short-term jobs during periods of higher demand. The announcement also serves as a reminder that H-2B demand often moves quickly and that filing windows can close once the numerical limit is met.