On May 17, 2013, USCIS provided an update of the amount of cap-subject H-2B visas received and approved by the federal agency for the first and second halves of Fiscal Year 2013. According to USCIS, a total of 20,712 beneficiaries have been approved for the second half of Fiscal Year 2013, with an additional 1,860 petitions pending. A total of 43,089 beneficiaries were approved for the first half of Fiscal Year 2013 with an additional 174 petitions pending.

Congressionally-based legislation limits the amount of H-2B visas provided per fiscal year to a total of 66,000, with 33,000 allocated for employment for the first half of the fiscal year and 33,000 allocated for employment for the second half of the fiscal year. Unused numbers from the first half of the fiscal year are made available for use by employers seeking H-2B workers during the second half of the year. These numbers do not, however, carry over from one fiscal year to another.