A good day has arrived for Bolivia. Beginning Thursday, November 9, 2023, citizens of that country “will be eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs to fill temporary (temporary) vacancies in the United States.”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of State (DOS), has released the lists of countries whose nationals will be eligible to participate in the H-2A and H-2B visa programs next year.
Effective November 9, 2023, the Minister of National Security, in agreement with the Head of the Secretary of State, has decided to add Bolivia to the list of countries eligible to participate in the H-2A and H- 2B programs, he noted. the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
As of November 9, 2023, they highlighted in the Voice of America: “Bolivians will be able to apply for temporary agricultural or non-agricultural jobs in the United States.”
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According to the media, “Bolivia should be designated as an eligible country to participate in the H-2A and H-2B nonimmigrant visa programs because its participation is of interest to the United States,” DHS determined in the changes to the Federal Register. .
The agency argued that Bolivia “has consistently cooperated with the United States in accepting the deportations of its nationals subject to a final deportation order.”
What do the H-2A and H-2B visa programs look like?
The H-2A and H-2B visa programs, USCIS explained, allow U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural and non-agricultural jobs, respectively.
USCIS generally approves H-2A and H-2B petitions only for nationals of countries that the Secretary of Homeland Security has designated as eligible to participate in the programs.
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However, USCIS may approve H-2A and H-2B petitions on a case-by-case basis, including those pending as of the date of publication of the Federal Register notice, for nationals of countries not on the list, if that is the case. determined that this will be to the advantage of the United States.
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Reserved visas
According to the Voice of America, “Tens of thousands of people will have access to temporary visas to work in the United States in fiscal year 2024. They will include 20,000 citizens of Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti and Honduras, for whom the U.S. government has reserved H-2B visas.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that it will make more than 64,000 additional H-2B visas available for temporary non-agricultural workers. These will be added to the 66,000 that Congress allows to be appropriated each year.
Although Bolivia was not included in the number of H-2B visas reserved, for the first time that country was included as eligible to participate in the H-2 programs, the Voice of America pointed out.
For the immigration authorities, the aforementioned media emphasize: “Bolivian citizens are not very concerned” about staying longer than allowed by visas, and “generally comply with the conditions of all visa categories.”
To see which countries’ nationals are eligible to receive H-2A and H-2B visas starting November 9, visit this link
With information from Voice of America/USCIS
(JO)
Source: Eluniverso
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