Thousands of Additional H-2B Visas to Boost Travel Industry, Economic Growth

U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Friday announcement that it will make available an additional 65,000 H-2B temporary worker visas for FY24: 

“Following months of consistent advocacy from U.S. Travel Association, these additional H-2B visas—released well ahead of the peak travel season—will provide a boost to an industry whose workforce shortage continues to exceed one million open positions.

“While this is a step forward in alleviating workforce pressures, there are 10 million job openings across the U.S., underscoring that there are not enough U.S. job seekers to meet demand. A clear need exists to permanently expand the H-2B program, particularly to support the small and seasonal businesses that depend on temporary workers.

“U.S. Travel thanks the Department of Homeland Security for releasing the supplemental H-2B visas and calls on lawmakers to more urgently seek bipartisan solutions to permanently expand this program.”