Trump Administration Nearly Doubles H-2B Guest Visa Program, Which Brings Many Mexican Workers

Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post

As President Trump threatened to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border in recent days, his Department of Homeland Security nearly doubled the number of temporary guest worker visas available this summer.

The Homeland Security and Labor departments plan to grant an additional 30,000 H-2B visas this summer on top of the 33,000 they had already planned to give out, the agencies confirmed.

The H-2B visa allows foreign workers to come to the United States legally and work for several months at companies such as landscapers, amusement parks or hotels. About 80 percent of these visas went to people from Mexico and Central America last year, government data shows.

Trump says there is a national emergency at the southern border because too many people are trying to come to the United States illegally or to seek asylum. On Friday, he implored migrants to turn around and go home.

“Can’t take you anymore,” Trump said, while standing at the border in California. “Our country is full.”

But his administration is sending a different message to some short-term workers. With the additional visas, the Trump administration is on track to grant 96,000 H-2B visas this fiscal year, the most since 2007, when George W. Bush was president.

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