REGULATIONS

 

Per the H2B regulations, a US employer hiring H2B workers is responsible to cover (pay for or reimburse) the cost of:

 

VISA PROCESSING FEE(S) (if hiring workers from overseas) – the cost of the visa, visa processing, border crossing, and other government-related fees (excluding passport fees). These costs would only be incurred by, and therefore reimbursed to, H2B workers coming to the Employer from outside the USA.  The reimbursement must be operated within the first workweek after the worker’s arrival to the Employer.

 

INBOUND TRANSPORTATION (overseas / in-country workers) – the most economical and reasonable cost of transportation incurred by the H2B workers traveling from their point of origin to the Employer's location, provided the H2B workers complete 50% of the work period. 

 

SUBSISTENCE – the cost of food / soft drinks/lodging incurred by the worker during travel.  The maximum per-diem reimbursable amount is $59.00 per day of travel (1 day for those who fly, or 2-3 days for those who drive) as long as the workers provide receipts.  If they do not provide receipts, then the reimbursable amount is $15.46 per day of travel. 

 

OUTBOUND TRANSPORTATION – the most economical and reasonable cost of transportation incurred by the H2B workers traveling from the Employer's location back to their home country, provided the H2B workers complete the entire work period. 

 

WHEN TO REIMBURSE

 

For the summer season (May-Oct)

 

• Visa fee - $190 - within the first workweek

• Inbound travel – on or about the mid-point of the season (approximately August 1)

• Outbound travel – towards the end of the season as release dates are settled

  

​For the winter season (Oct-May)

 

• Visa fee - $190 - within the first workweek

• Inbound travel – on or about the mid-point of the season (approximately February 1)

• Outbound travel – towards the end of the season as release dates are settled

 

WHAT TO REIMBURSE

 

TRANSPORTATION REIMBURSEMENT – INBOUND

 

The reimbursable amounts for transportation are plane/train/bus tickets, car rental, gas for the rental, luggage fees, taxi to the departure airport, and taxi from arrival airport.

 

Based on research, a one-way ticket between Florida and the North East (or vice versa) ranges from around $150 - $250 (North Carolina area) to  $300 - $375 (PA / NY area) including luggage fees which most of the H2B workers will likely incur (they travel with 2-3 pieces of luggage in some cases).  Approximately 60% - 70% of the H2Bs in our program fly, so for them the reimbursement should be fairly straightforward. 

 

Those who drive their own vehicles may turn in receipts for gas only.  For them, the reimbursement should be pretty simple as well. 

 

Those who rent cars may provide receipts for the car rental. In this instance, special attention should be paid, especially if the cost of the rental was shared with someone else (i.e. if 4 H2Bs rented a car together, then each person should be reimbursed ¼ of the rental cost and ¼ of gas expenses, etc.). 

 

SUBSISTENCE REIMBURSEMENT

 

Acceptable expenses are meals (no tips), beverages (no alcohol), and lodging.

 

Depending on the receipts submitted, you must reimburse accordingly, up to $59.00 per day of travel.

 

If the worker cannot provide receipts, then the total subsistence reimbursement is $15.46 per day.

 

Unless driving or traveling by train, flying is considered only 1 day of travel.

 

TRANSPORTATION REIMBURSEMENT – OUTBOUND

 

This would be an airfare reimbursement, so it should be fairly straightforward. 

 

HOW TO REIMBURSE

 

If possible, we recommend that whenever possible all applicable reimbursements be handled via separate checks and outside of the normal payroll checks.  This way, in the case of a DOL audit, they will be able to follow the money with ease.

 

If not possible, then the line items categorizing the reimbursed amounts for subsistence and transportation should be clearly outlined and identifiable on the paycheck.

 

Record keeping is very important – copies of applicable receipts should be kept in your records (the employee’s personnel file) for at least 3 years.