Last week, a hold was placed on a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) emergency interim final rule, which restricts how states can issue non-domiciled commercial driver's licenses. 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted an administrative stay on Nov. 10, halting the enforcement of the rule pending further review.  

The initial rule aimed to limit who can hold a non-domiciled CDL or commercial learner’s permit, limiting it to individuals on H-2A, H-2B, or E-2 visas, and excluding other categories with work authorization, such as asylum seekers, refugees, and DACA recipients. 

According to the administrative stay, “Until further notice, states are not prohibited from issuing non-domiciled CDLs and commercial learner’s permits in accordance with the FMCSA’s regulations and guidance in effect immediately prior to issuance of the interim final rule.” 

An ongoing case summary from the Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse notes that 200,000 people would no longer be able to hold these licenses and, therefore, would be out of work as a result of this rule.  

Lujan v. FMCSA was initiated by two commercial drivers — one a DACA recipient and the other an asylum seeker — together with two unions. King County v. FMCSA was filed by the King County, Washington, government, which employs non-domiciled CDL holders for its public transit operations. 

The original interim final rule took effect on September 29, with public comments due by November 28. However, FMCSA announced its intentions to finalize the rule regardless of the ongoing litigation. 

California Licensing Program Targeted 

On Nov. 12, the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced that the ongoing FMCSA audit found the California Department of Motor Vehicles “illegally issued 17,000 non-domiciled CDLs,” which could be revoked. 

According to the release, notices were issued to the 17,000 non-domiciled CDL holders that their license “no longer meets federal requirements and will expire in 60 days.” 

In the original interim final rule, California was cited as a top state for “systemic non-compliance” and “weak oversight, insufficient training, and programming errors.” Due to these findings, direct enforcement action was announced against California, requiring the state to come into compliance within 30 days. 

According to trucknews.com, FMCSA’s own data shows immigrants with non-domiciled CDLs account for “roughly 5% of all commercial driver’s licenses but only about 0.2% of all fatal crashes.” 

Looking Back: Additional Driver Restrictions and Changes 

In April 2025, President Trump also signed Executive Order 14286, “Enforcing Commonsense Rules of the Road for America’s Truck Drivers,” requiring the FMCSA to rescind the 2016 guidance and issue new guidance.  

According to the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), this order included an FMCSA out-of-service criteria revision detailing that violations of the English language proficiency requirement will result in the “driver being placed out of service.” 

Part 1 of the CVSA North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria will be amended to include:  

9.  English Proficiency (U.S. Only) 

• Driver cannot satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of 391.11(b)(2) as per FMCSA Enforcement Guidance Memo MC-SEE-2025-0001. (391.11(b)(2)) Declare drive out of service.  

Per the FMCSA guidance, this can be assessed through a verbal driver interview or a highway traffic sign recognition test.  

In a statement from the National School Transportation Association (NSTA), the industry is encouraged to contact state-specific driver’s license agencies for the most up-to-date information on whether they have resumed issuing non-domiciled CDLs or CLPs. 

“It is important to recognize that federal action on this matter intersects with immigration laws, FMCSA regulations, and ultimately state-level implementation of the non-domiciled program,” NSTA said in the statement.