US makes 35,000 additional immigrant visas available
By The Star Staff
Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón announced Tuesday that the United States departments of Homeland Security and Labor announced an increase in the limit on the number of immigrant visas, known as H-2B, which went up by another 35,000 people for the current fiscal year 2022.
The visas can be requested by employers from April 1 to Sept. 30.
“This is excellent news both for the Dominican [nationals] who still call and tell us of their interest in applying for these visas to work on the island, as well as for the employers in Puerto Rico who still need labor to move forward with construction projects in Puerto Rico,” González Colón said in a written statement.
The resident commissioner noted that each year, the United States grants H-2B visas to work temporarily in the country, and specifically for these H-2B visas a limit exists of 66,000 per fiscal year, so the increase of 35,000 is a significant one for the program.