On June 22, President Trump issued an Executive Order extending current restrictions on certain immigrant visas that have been in place since April and expanded those entry restrictions to certain nonimmigrant visa categories, including the H-2B seasonal guest worker program used by some NRCA members to meet their seasonal workforce needs.
The order, “Proclamation Suspending the Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak,” suspends the entry of guest workers enrolled in the H-2B program and other visa programs through the end of 2020. The entry restrictions will apply to individuals who meet all the following criteria:
- They are outside the U.S. on the effective date of the proclamation, which is Wednesday, June 24.
- They do not have a nonimmigrant visa that was valid as of June 24.
- They do not have an official travel document other than a visa (such as a transportation letter, an appropriate boarding foil or an advance parole document) that was valid on June 24 or issued on any date thereafter that permits them to travel to the U.S. and seek entry or admission.
It is NRCA’s understanding that individuals who have a valid H-2B visa before June 24 and also enter the U.S. on or before this date will be able to participate in the H-2B program this year. The proclamation will be reviewed periodically where the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Department of Labor and Department of State, can recommend modifications to the proclamation’s restrictions in the future.
The administration portrayed the effort as a way to ensure currently unemployed individuals have the opportunity to obtain seasonal jobs in an economy reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, many business groups opposed the EO, including the H-2B Workforce Coalition, of which NRCA is a member, which issued a statement noting despite high unemployment levels, the need for H-2B visas still is strong “due to factors such as the seasonality of the work, the nature of the work, and the location of the job.” The statement further called on the administration to “re-visit the order’s restriction on the issuance of H-2B visas.”
