Lexington, Ky. (May 6, 2019) — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it will begin accepting petitions on Wednesday, May 8 for 30,000 additional H-2B visas restricted to returning workers for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019.  Rules set to be published in Wednesday’s  Federal  Register include the following language.

“Starting on the expected date of May 8, 2019, eligible petitioners seeking additional H-2B workers can file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, and must submit a supplemental attestation on Form ETA 9142-B-CAA-3 with their petition.”

Details on eligibility and filing requirements are available in the final rule and at USCIS.gov. 

The supplemental H-2B visas are available only to returning workers who received an H-2B visa, or were otherwise granted H-2B status, during one of the last three fiscal years (FY 2016, 2017, or 2018), and availability is restricted by prioritizing only those businesses who would suffer irreparable harm  without the additional workers.

“We applaud the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor for this joint rule making available an additional 30,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas for Fiscal Year 2019,” said NTRA President and CEO Alex Waldrop. “Even though these supplemental H-2B visas are available only to returning workers and there is an irreparable harm limitation, many Thoroughbred trainers will no doubt qualify for these visas because of the labor shortage that is now the norm on racetrack backstretches.”

Waldrop further added, “We urge Congress to pass legislation to permanently and significantly expand the number of H-2B visas made available on an annual basis.”

 About the NTRA

The NTRA, based in Lexington, Ky., is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 horse racing interests and thousands of individual stakeholders consisting of horseplayers, racetrack operators, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity, welfare and integrity of Thoroughbred racing through consensus-based leadership, legislative advocacy, safety and integrity initiatives, fan engagement and corporate partner development. The NTRA owns and manages the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance; NTRA.com; the Eclipse Awards; the National Horseplayers Championship; NTRA Advantage, a corporate partner sales and sponsorship program; and Horse PAC®, a federal political action committee. NTRA press releases appear on NTRA.com, Twitter (@ntra) and Facebook (facebook.com/1NTRA).

 

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