At least 20,000 Mexican truck drivers lost their work visas in the United States between April 2025 and April 2026 for failing to meet English language requirements, reported Augusto Ramos Melo, president of the National Chamber of Freight Transportation (Canacar) .

During the presentation of the results of his first 100 days in office, he explained that the figure was shared by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and is part of the actions derived from an executive order issued by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, in April 2025.

“They were from April 2025 to April 2026. These operators returned to Mexico after their work visas were revoked,” he said.

Ramos clarified that the impact is not limited to Mexican operators . According to information shared by the ATA, the president of Canacar commented that approximately 30,000 foreign operators have been removed from operations in the United States, of which 20,000 are Mexican.

Although the leader acknowledged that there is still no precise assessment of the economic impact of this measure , he explained that the reduction in the availability of operators is already beginning to generate pressures in the US market.

“The only thing that happened here was the supply-demand effect, where obviously the cost of freight in the United States has been starting to have an upward effect,” he said.

However, he emphasized that North America’s economic performance has so far prevented a greater impact. Nevertheless, he warned that if economic activity picks up, the shortage of operators could be more clearly reflected in logistics costs.

“It is very likely that this impact will be seen gradually,” he stated.

The measure comes in a context where the trucking industry is facing a growing shortage of drivers both in Mexico and in other regions of the world.

Canacar estimates that there is currently a shortage of approximately 96,000 truck drivers in Mexico , a figure that could increase in the coming years due to the aging workforce. According to Ramos, around 30% of active truck drivers are over 55 years old, while only 13% are under 25.

Globally, the problem has also become a concern for the logistics industry . During Canacar’s participation in the International Road Transport Union (IRU) , the organization predicted a global shortage of more than 2.8 million operators by 2030.

Given this scenario, Canacar launched an English language training program aimed at operators, transporters and their families.

The tool is available online and can be used on mobile devices. According to Ramos, the goal is to strengthen the language skills of operators involved in cross-border operations and reduce the risk of further disruptions stemming from regulatory requirements in the United States.

The agency also reported that it maintains a close relationship with the ATA to monitor the evolution of this issue and obtain more accurate information on the impact that the departure of operators has had on the US market.

For now, Canacar acknowledged that one of the main challenges will be identifying how many of the operators who returned to the country have rejoined Mexican companies and how many remain outside the transport industry .

“It has been difficult to track them all down to find out if they are already working in Mexico or in some other profession,” Ramos emphasized.

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Following the start of the United States government’s executive order requiring B1 visa holders to be proficient in English in order to operate on the country’s roads, no major impacts on cross-border transport have been recorded so far . However, the measure is believed to be part of President Donald Trump’s actions to combat cabotage .

In the framework of the discussion  Intermodal and foreign trade, challenges 2025 , organized by the National Association of Vehicle Tracking and Protection Companies (ANERPV) , Diego Anchustegui, president of the Mexican Association of Intermodal Transport (AMTI) , said that currently the impact is not so strong because there is not a great need for transportation, derived from the tariff policy of the United States, among other factors.

“We still have a cushion now. How will it continue to affect us? Well, we’ll see over time. We’re not seeing a huge impact. We don’t know how many operators there are with B1 visas or how many are operating in the United States who don’t speak English. All of the associations don’t know the impact yet,” he stressed.

It’s worth remembering that on April 28, the White House announced that Trump signed an executive order requiring all trucking operators to demonstrate English proficiency to operate on U.S. roads. June 25, the date designated by the U.S. government to rigorously implement the measure, marked the beginning of a stricter phase.

The measure establishes, among other factors, that operators with B1 visas must communicate in English with the authorities of their northern neighbor or else face fines and disqualification.

In his participation, Anchustegui commented that these types of measures were taken due to alleged abuses in the handling of B1 visas , which are granted to operators for trips originating in Mexico and ending in the United States, and vice versa.

He emphasized that U.S. authorities detected that cabotage—transporting merchandise within U.S. territory—was taking place, and that Mexican operators were using this permit to make a trip between Los Angeles, California, and Chicago , Illinois , which is not permitted.

“This began to attract the attention of the authorities, and they sought to resolve this problem, which was pushing this permit to its limits,” said the commercial director of EASO Transport .

At the event, he concluded that in light of this situation, there was a change in the regulation of this type of visa .

As you may recall, there have already been cases of trucking operators whose visas have been revoked for alleged cabotage, as Alfonso Millán, delegate of the National Chamber of Cargo Trucking (Canacar)  in Tijuana, explained to T21.

“They revoked their visas and forced them to sign a form voluntarily withdrawing their request for admission to the United States. Only one refused to sign, and that’s why he remains detained, awaiting an immigration judge,” Millán said.

The case involved 20 Mexican operators who were intercepted in early July by immigration authorities at a checkpoint set up at one of the exits of Calexico, California, after which they were accused of allegedly engaging in cabotage , an activity prohibited for Mexican trucking.

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