Nature Coast Times publication area sees 346 H-2A petitions from employers during 2024

Employers based in the Nature Coast Times publication area submitted 346 H-2A petitions during 2024, 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.

Of these, 300 were approved (86.7%), while 46 were denied (13.3%).

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.

For comparison, the average approval rate for H-2A petitions across the United States in 2024 stood at 98.8%, slightly higher than 2023’s 98.4%.

The Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting industry led the H-2A filings in Nature Coast Times publication area during 2024, with 344 petitions (99.4% of all submissions), and an approval rate of 86.6%. Meanwhile, the Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation industry was the second largest contributor, filing two petitions (0.6% of the total), with an approval rate of 100%.

The local employers with the most temporary agricultural visa requests during 2024 included Lands Palm Trees, Inc., which filed 80 petitions with an approval rate of 50%, and Simple Life Farms, LLC with 66 petitions and an approval rate of 100%.

Compared to 2023, the publication area saw a 0.7% decrease in the number of H-2A petitions during 2024.

The United States admits around 1 million legal immigrants annually, most of whom receive permanent residence (green cards) through family sponsorship or employment-based visas. In 2023, about 1.2 million immigrants were granted green cards, a return to pre-pandemic levels. Temporary visa programs, such as the H-1B for highly skilled workers and H-2A for seasonal agricultural workers, also play a critical role in filling workforce needs.

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.