I-129H2A (PDFi) Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker: H-2A Classification

I-129 H2A PDF
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August 13, 2025

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Form I-129H-2A consists of the:
1. Basic petition; and
2. H-2A Named Beneficiary Attachment (required when more than one named beneficiary is included in the petition).
H-2A Nonimmigrants
The H-2A classification is for aliens coming to the United States temporarily to perform agricultural labor or services of
a temporary or seasonal nature.
The H-2A classification always requires a petition.
The petition may be filed by:
1. The employer listed on the temporary labor certification;
2. The employer’s agent; or
3. The association of U.S. agricultural producers named as a joint employer on the temporary labor certification.
The H-2A petitioner, employer (if different from the petitioner), and each joint employer must complete and sign the relevant
sections of the Form I-129H2A. A separate Part 11 (Certification and Signature of Joint Employer) must be submitted for each
joint employer.

Including more than one alien in a petition. You may include on the same petition multiple aliens who seek
admission in the H-2A classifications if the conditions listed below are met. However, H-2A petitions are limited to 25
named beneficiaries per petition.
All beneficiaries must:
1. Be employed for the same period of time; and
2. Perform the same services.
Total number of workers: The total number of workers you request on an H-2A petition must not exceed the
number of workers approved by the Department of Labor on the temporary labor certification. If naming beneficiaries,
a single H-2A petition may not include more than 25 named workers. A petitioner may file additional petitions if
requesting more than 25 named workers.
Naming beneficiaries. Generally, you may request named or unnamed workers as beneficiaries of an H-2A petition.
However, you may not request both named and unnamed workers on the same H-2A petition. Workers must be
named if you request workers who are currently in the United States.
Filing Multiple Petitions
You generally may file one petition to request all of your H-2A workers associated with one temporary labor
certification (with a limit of 25 named workers per petition). In cases where filing a separate petition is not required, it
may nevertheless be advantageous to file more than one H-2A petition instead. This can occur when you petition for
multiple workers, some of whom may not qualify for part or all of the validity period you request. This most frequently
occurs when:
1. You request workers who have an uninterrupted period of absence of at least 60 days from the United States; or
2. At least one worker is nearing the 3-year maximum stay limit.
If we request additional evidence because of these situations, it may delay petition processing. Filing separate
petitions for workers who are not affected by these scenarios may enable you to quickly obtain some workers, if they
are otherwise eligible, in the event that the petition for your other workers is delayed. If you decide to file more than
one petition with the same temporary labor certification, you may do so if:
1. The total number of beneficiaries on your petitions does not exceed the total number of workers approved by the
U.S. Department of Labor on the temporary labor certification; and
2. Each petition is accompanied by a copy of the same temporary labor certification.
Period of Absence
An absence from the United States for an uninterrupted period of at least 60 days will provide a new total of 3 years
of H-2A status that may be granted.
The 3-year maximum period of stay in H-2A status does not automatically restart if the worker departs the United
States. It restarts only if the absence is for a continuous period of at least 60 days.

Recruitment of H-2A Workers
The petitioner must provide the name(s) and address(es) of all agents, facilitators, recruiters, or similar employment
services hired by or working for the petitioner to locate and/or recruit the H-2A workers that the petitioner intends to hire by
filing this petition. The petitioner must provide this information regardless of whether the petitioner has a direct or indirect
contractual relationship, and whether such person or entity is located inside or outside the United States or is a
governmental or quasi-governmental entity.
NOTE: U.S. Department of Labor regulations require H-2A petitioners to continue to keep foreign labor recruiter information
up to date until the end of the work contract period, with this updated information available in the event of a post-certification
audit or upon request by the Department of Labor. Additionally, the Department of State may request up to date foreign
labor recruiter information at the time of visa application.
Initial Evidence
The evidence listed below for H-2A petitions and for those petitions seeking a change of status or extension of stay, as
applicable, must be included.
The petitioner must submit:
1. A single valid temporary labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor;* and
2. Evidence showing that each named beneficiary meets the minimum job requirements stated in the temporary labor
certification at the time the certification application was filed.
*Under certain emergent circumstances, as determined by USCIS, petitions requesting a continuation of employment
with the same employer for 2 weeks or less are exempt from the temporary labor certification requirement. See 8 CFR
214.2(h)(5)(x).
If a beneficiary is seeking a change of status, extension of stay, or amendment of stay, evidence of maintenance of status
must be included with the new petition. If the beneficiary is employed in the United States, the petitioner may submit
copies of the beneficiary’s last 2 pay stubs, Form W-2, and other relevant evidence, as well as a copy of the beneficiary’s
Form I-94, passport, travel document, or I-797.
The beneficiary’s dependent family members (generally, spouses and children under 21) should use Form I-539,
Application to Change/Extend Nonimmigrant Status, to apply for a change of status or extension of stay.
A nonimmigrant, who must have a passport to be admitted, generally must maintain a valid passport during his or her
entire stay.

Additional Information Regarding H-2A Petitions
Prohibited Fees
As a condition of approval of an H-2A petition, no job placement fee, fee or penalty for breach of contract, or other
fee, penalty, or compensation (either direct or indirect) related to the H-2A employment (collectively, “prohibited
fees”) may be collected at any time from a beneficiary of an H-2A petition or any person acting on the beneficiary’s
behalf by a petitioner, a petitioner’s employee, agent, attorney, facilitator, recruiter, or similar employment service, or
any employer (if different from the petitioner). The term “similar employment service” refers to any person or entity
that recruits or solicits prospective beneficiaries of the H-2A petition. This includes recruitment or employment
services offered by private, nongovernmental individuals and entities, as well as quasi-governmental entities and
governmental entities, whether or not such person or entity is located in the United States. Further, no such fee
related to the H-2A employment may be collected by a petitioner’s joint employers, including a petitioner’s member
employers if the petitioner is an association of United States agricultural producers, whether before or after the filing
or approval of a petition. Prohibited fees may include, but are not limited to, deduction or withholding of wages or
salary, whether or not such deduction or withholding of wages or salary provides some benefit to the beneficiary. The
passing of a cost to the beneficiary that, by statute or applicable regulations is the responsibility of the petitioner,
constitutes the collection of a prohibited fee.

It is not prohibited for workers to provide reimbursement for costs paid on their behalf that are the responsibility and
primarily for the benefit of the worker, such as government-required passport fees. Furthermore, it is not prohibited for
employers to reimburse a worker for fees or expenses incurred by the worker where such reimbursement is specifically
permitted by, and made in compliance with, all applicable federal, state and/or local statute or regulations.
The petition should be filed with evidence that indicates the beneficiaries have not paid, and will not pay, prohibited
fees.
The petition will be denied or revoked if USCIS determines that the petitioner or any petitioner’s employee, agent,
attorney, facilitator, recruiter, or similar employment service, or any employer or joint employer, collected, or entered
into an agreement to collect, prohibited fees, as described above, whether before or after the filing of the petition.
The only exceptions to a mandatory denial or revocation for prohibited fees are as follows.
If the petitioner or any of its employees collected or entered into an agreement to collect a prohibited fee, a petitioner
must demonstrate through clear and convincing evidence that:
1. The petitioner made ongoing, good faith reasonable efforts to prevent and learn of the prohibited fee(s) collection or
agreement by such parties throughout the recruitment, hiring, and employment process;
2. Extraordinary circumstances beyond the petitioner’s control resulted in the petitioner’s failure to prevent collection or
entry into agreement for collection of prohibited fees;
3. The petitioner took immediate remedial action as soon as the petitioner became aware of the payment or agreement
to pay prohibited fees, including ensuring the termination of any agreement to collect such fees; and
4. The petitioner fully reimbursed all affected beneficiaries or the beneficiaries’ designees if applicable (see note
below).
If any employer, agent, attorney, facilitator, recruiter, or similar employment service collected or entered into an
agreement to collect a prohibited fee, a petitioner must demonstrate through clear and convincing evidence that:
1. The petitioner made ongoing, good faith reasonable efforts to prevent and learn of the prohibited fee(s) collection or
agreement by such parties throughout the recruitment, hiring, and employment process. (A written contract between
the petitioner and any agent, attorney, facilitator, recruiter, similar employment service, or member employer stating
that such fees were prohibited will not, by itself, be sufficient to meet this standard of proof.);
2. The petitioner took immediate remedial action as soon as it became aware of the payment of the prohibited fee or
agreement; and
3. All affected beneficiaries or the beneficiaries’ designees, if applicable, have been fully reimbursed (see note below).

NOTE: A beneficiary’s designee may be reimbursed only if an affected beneficiary cannot be located or is
deceased. A designee must be an individual or entity for whom the beneficiary has provided prior written
authorization to receive such reimbursement, as long as the petitioner or its agent, employer, attorney, facilitator,
recruiter, or similar employment service would not act as such designee or derive any financial benefit, either
directly or indirectly, from the reimbursement.
If the petition was denied or revoked for prohibited fees, or if the petitioner withdrew the petition after USCIS issued
a notice of intent to deny or revoke on this basis, any H-2A or H-2B petition that the petitioner or the petitioner’s
successor in interest files within 1 year after the decision or acknowledgment of withdrawal will be denied. After
such 1-year period, any H-2A or H-2B petition that the petitioner or the petitioner’s successor in interest files will be
denied for an additional 3 years unless each affected beneficiary, or the beneficiary’s designee as appropriate, has
been reimbursed in full. Denial on this basis will apply to petitions for both the H-2A and H-2B classifications
regardless of whether the denial, revocation, or withdrawal occurred in the H-2A or H-2B program.
Other Violations
USCIS has the authority to deny H-2A petitions if the petitioner has been found to have committed certain serious
labor law violations or otherwise violated the requirements of the H-2A or H-2B program. Prospective denials under
this provision will apply across both H-2 classifications regardless of whether the violation occurred in the H-2A or
H-2B program. For the purposes of this denial authority, a criminal conviction or final administrative or judicial
determination against any one of the following individuals will be treated as a conviction or final administrative or
judicial determination against the petitioner or successor in interest:
1. An individual acting on behalf of the petitioner, which could include, among others, the petitioner’s owner,
employee, or contractor; or
2. For the purposes of discretionary denial, any employee of the petitioner who a reasonable person in the H-2A or
H-2B worker’s position would believe is acting on behalf of the petitioner.
The term “successor in interest” means an employer that is controlling and carrying on the business of a previous
employer regardless of whether such successor in interest has succeeded to all of the rights and liabilities of the
predecessor entity. USCIS looks at 8 CFR 214.2(h)(5)(xi)(C) and (6)(i)(D) to determine whether an employer is a
successor in interest.
Whether the denial is mandatory or discretionary will depend on the nature of the past violation(s), as described
below.

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