December 29, 2025. Office of Foreign Labor Certification Reminds Stakeholders of the H-2B Application Filing Timeline for the 2026 Peak Filing Season

Key changes

The Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) reminds employers and other interested stakeholders that the filing window to submit an H-2B Application for Temporary Employment Certification (Form ETA-9142B and appendices) requesting work start dates of April 1, 2026, or later, will open on January 1, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time.

Following OFLC's standard operating procedures, H-2B applications requesting an April 1, 2026, work start date will be denied if they are filed before January 1, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time.

OFLC will randomly order for processing all H-2B applications requesting a work start date of April 1, 2026, that are filed during the initial three calendar days (January 1-3, 2026) using the randomization procedures published in the Federal Register on March 4, 2019.

If OFLC identifies multiple applications that appear to have been filed for the same job opportunity, OFLC will issue a Notice of Deficiency. If multiple filings are submitted during the three-day filing window, all applications will receive a Notice of Deficiency requesting that the employer demonstrate that the job opportunities are not the same. Employers that fail to establish a bona fide need for each application will receive a non-acceptance denial for each application.

IMPORTANT REMINDER: Employers are reminded that Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) System user accounts are solely for the use of the individual for whom they were created. Sharing the same user account is forbidden and is grounds for terminating FLAG access. Passwords or any other authentication mechanism should never be shared or stored in any place easily accessible. If stored, a password may not be stored in a clear-text or readable format.