The Geography of the H-2 Visa Temporary Migrant Labor Program in Mexico and the United States

This article examines the geography of H-2 visas, a temporary migrant labor program that recruits mainly Mexican workers to the United States. The analysis draws on the EMIF Norte survey and labor certification data from the U.S. Department of Labor to map the origins and destinations of H-2 temporary migrant workers. Findings indicate that, despite significant changes in the modality of cross-border migration, in Mexico, H-2 recruitment occurs in the states and regions where undocumented sojourning previously took place. In the United States, while demand remains strongest in regions long familiar with guest workers, H-2 recruitment has become increasingly prominent in western states. Overall, the H-2 visa program has expanded at a national scale in both countries, and although the rise of H-2 visas reflects a new mobility regime, this managed migration scheme is spatially developing on the legacy of undocumented migration

Certification · Destinations · Immigration · Migrant workers · Scale (ratio · Western hemisphere · Diaspora, migration, transnational identity · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies