H-2B Visa Cap Reached for Returning Workers FY 2026

USCIS Policy Alerts

Published February 13th, 2026

Detected March 1st, 2026

Summary

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the cap has been reached for the first allocation of returning worker H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2026. The agency received more petitions than available visas and used a random selection process for petitions received between February 2 and February 6, 2026.

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What changed

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the cap has been reached for the additional 18,490 H-2B visas made available for the first allocation of returning workers for Fiscal Year 2026. The period for receiving petitions for these visas, intended for start dates between January 1 and March 31, 2026, concluded on February 6, 2026. Due to receiving more petitions than available visas, USCIS employed a computer-generated random selection process for petitions filed during the first five business days of the filing period (February 2-6, 2026).

Employers who petitioned for H-2B returning workers for FY 2026 and were not selected in this initial allocation may need to explore alternative visa options or await future allocations if available. The random selection process was completed on February 13, 2026, after which USCIS began premium processing services for selected petitions. Affected employers should consult the USCIS website for further details on H-2B supplemental visas and potential next steps.

What to do next

Review USCIS announcement regarding H-2B returning worker visa allocations for FY 2026.
Assess if petitions filed between Feb 2-6, 2026, were selected in the random lottery.
Explore alternative visa options for workers if petitions were not selected.

Source document (simplified)

Cap Reached for First Allocation of Returning Worker H-2B Visas FY 2026

Release Date

02/13/2026

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services received enough petitions to reach the cap for the additional 18,490 H-2B visas made available for the first allocation of returning workers of fiscal year 2026 with start dates from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2026, under the H-2B supplemental cap temporary final rule (FY 2026 TFR). Feb. 6, 2026, was the final receipt date for petitions requesting supplemental H-2B visas under the first allocation of returning worker H-2B visas for FY 2026.

USCIS received more petitions than available H-2B visas for the FY 2026 first allocation of returning workers. In accordance with regulations, the agency used a computer-generated selection process to fairly allocate the visas without exceeding the first FY 2026 supplemental cap allocation. On Feb. 13, USCIS conducted this random selection process for petitions received on the first five business days of filing (Feb. 2 through Feb. 6, 2026) and began premium processing services afterward.

Additional information on the FY 2026 supplemental visas is available on the Temporary Increase in H-2B Nonimmigrant Visas for FY 2026 page.

Last Reviewed/Updated:

02/13/2026

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