Houston Business Daily coverage area records 2,950 H-2A employer petitions in 2024

In 2024, employers located within the Houston Business Daily coverage area submitted a total of 2,950 H-2A visa petitions, according to data provided by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services via the H-2A Employer Data Hub.

Out of these submissions, 2,906 petitions were approved, representing a 98.5% approval rate, while 44 petitions were denied, accounting for 1.5%.

The H-2A visa program allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers for temporary or seasonal agricultural jobs when enough domestic workers are unavailable. Employers must demonstrate a short-term need and that hiring foreign workers will not negatively affect U.S. workers’ wages or working conditions. These jobs must first be offered to U.S. workers, and both domestic and H-2A workers must receive at least the highest of the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) or other wage benchmarks.

Nationally, the average approval rate for H-2A petitions in 2024 was 98.8%, a slight increase from 2023’s rate of 98.4%.

The Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting industry led the H-2A filings in Houston Business Daily publication area during 2024, with 2,863 petitions (97.1% of all submissions), and an approval rate of 98.5%. Meanwhile, the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services industry was the second largest contributor, filing 41 petitions (1.4% of the total), with an approval rate of 100%.

The Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting sector dominated H-2A petition filings in the Houston Business Daily coverage area during 2024, submitting 2,863 petitions, which accounted for 97.1% of all filings, with an approval rate of 98.5%. The Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services sector was the second largest, contributing 41 petitions (1.4% of the total) and achieving a 100% approval rate.

Among local employers, Agent Installers, Inc. led in temporary agricultural visa filings with 461 petitions and a 97.4% approval rate. Creekside Nursery, LLC followed with 140 petitions, all of which were approved.

The Houston Business Daily publication area experienced an 8.9% rise in H-2A petition filings in 2024 compared to the previous year.

Public opinion on immigration varies, with 46% of Americans favoring maintaining current legal immigration levels, according to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey. Additionally, 42% believe that highly skilled workers, such as scientists, doctors, and programmers, should be prioritized for legal immigration, compared to 25% who prioritize workers filling labor shortages and 19% who emphasize family sponsorship. Despite this, family sponsorship remains the most common path to permanent residency, accounting for 63% of green cards issued in 2023.

Due to manual data entry and the use of paper forms by applicants or petitioners, occasional discrepancies in employer names, tax IDs, locations, or other details may be found in the H-2A Employer Data Hub provided by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is the data used in this article. Despite these potential issues, USCIS works to ensure accuracy.

Information in this story was obtained from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The source data can be found here.