H-2B Visas 2025: Cap Updates, Changes, and Opportunities for Hondurans

If you're Honduran and looking for temporary work in the United States, the H-2B visa program has a major advantage most people don't know about: 20,000 supplemental visas reserved exclusively for Central Americans, including Hondurans, with no requirement to have held an H-2B visa previously.

What is the H-2B visa?

The H-2B visa is a temporary work visa for non-agricultural jobs in the United States. It's used for hotels, restaurants, amusement parks, landscaping companies, seafood processors, and other industries that need seasonal workers.

Unlike the H-2A (for agricultural work), the H-2B has a fixed annual cap. For fiscal year 2025, the US government established:

• 66,000 base visas split into two halves (33,000 Oct–Mar, and 33,000 Apr–Sep).
• 64,716 additional supplemental visas, published in the Federal Register on December 2, 2024.
• Of those supplemental visas, 20,000 are exclusive to nationals of Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Haiti, Colombia, Ecuador, and Costa Rica — and do NOT require returning-worker status.

How does the process work?

The employer initiates everything. The process works like this:

1. The US employer applies for labor certification from the Department of Labor (DOL).
2. After DOL approval, the employer files an I-129 petition with USCIS.
3. USCIS approves the petition and the worker can apply for a consular visa.
4. The worker attends an interview at the US Embassy in Tegucigalpa.

Workers never self-petition. If someone charges you to "get you" an H-2B job without an identified employer, that is a fraud warning sign.

Which industries are hiring?

Industries with the highest H-2B worker demand include:

• Hotels and resorts (especially during peak seasons)
• Landscaping and grounds maintenance
• Seafood processing plants on the East Coast
• Amusement parks and carnivals
• Food services

8 key tips for applying

1. Don't wait for the regular cap. The 20,000 Central American visas are your best entry point as a first-time Honduran applicant.
2. Work only with licensed recruiters. Legitimate recruiters charge the employer, not the worker.
3. Verify your employer's DOL certification before your consular interview.
4. Gather documents early: valid passport (minimum 6 months), work history, proof of ties to Honduras.
5. Know your job offer in detail: position, company, location, salary, and exact dates.
6. Target high-demand sectors: resorts, landscaping, and seafood processing have the highest H-2B hiring volumes.
7. If you previously held H-2B in 2022, 2023, or 2024, you qualify as a returning worker — this gives you access to additional supplemental allocations.
8. The H-2B is temporary. Overstaying results in a 3 or 10-year bar from re-entering the US.

At Honduras Global we help you navigate this process professionally, from verifying your employer to preparing for the consular interview. Contact us today.