On August 21, 2025, the Trump administration abruptly halted the issuance of U.S. worker visas for commercial truck drivers, citing safety concerns following a deadly crash in Florida, Fox News reported.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on X, “Effective immediately, we are pausing all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers,” stating that foreign drivers endanger American lives and undercut local truckers.
The decision follows a fatal Florida Turnpike crash on August 12, where Harjinder Singh, an Indian national who entered the U.S. illegally, allegedly caused three deaths with an unauthorised U-turn. Singh, who held a commercial driver’s license from California, failed an English proficiency test post-crash, per federal officials. Florida’s Republican-led government, with Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins personally escorting Singh’s extradition from California, highlighted the case, intensifying political tensions.
Effective immediately we are pausing all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers.
The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on U.S. roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers.
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) August 21, 2025The crash fueled a dispute between the Trump administration and California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, who noted Singh received a work permit under Trump’s first term. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called the incident a “preventable tragedy,” while Republicans have long criticised foreign truckers, despite lacking direct evidence linking them to rising accidents. A 2016 Obama-era rule, relaxed under Trump in June 2025, now mandates English proficiency for drivers.
Killer illegal migrant trucker was given driver's license even though he barely knew English or how to drive https://t.co/i3IXYiaCia
— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) August 20, 2025Federal data shows foreign-born truckers, now 18% of the industry, doubled to 720,000 between 2000 and 2021, with many from Latin America, India, and Ukraine. A 2025 altLine study reported a 24,000-driver shortage, costing the freight industry $95.5 million weekly.
The visa ban aligns with Trump’s anti-immigration stance, a hallmark since his 2016 campaign, promising a Mexican border wall. Rubio has intensified visa scrutiny, rescinding over 6,000 student visas since January 2025 and pausing visitor visas for Gaza’s wounded children, influenced by far-right activist Laura Loomer, per The New York Times. All 55 million foreign visa holders face ongoing vetting, Rubio confirmed.
