New English Proficiency Rule for H-2A/H-2B CMV Drivers

New DOL Guidance Requires English Proficiency Language in Job Orders for Commercial Vehicle Drivers

If any of your H-2A or H-2B positions involve operating a commercial motor vehicle, there is a new requirement you need to know about, and it is already in effect.

The Department of Labor issued guidance on May 14, 2026 clarifying that every job order and application for temporary or permanent labor certification involving the operation of a commercial motor vehicle must now include an explicit English language proficiency standard. This requirement applies to H-2A, H-2B, CW-1, and PERM filings, and it became effective on June 15, 2026.

This is not a brand new legal requirement in the sense of creating a new rule out of nowhere. The underlying standard has existed in federal transportation law for years. What changed is that DOL is now requiring employers to spell it out explicitly in every job order and application, rather than assuming it is understood.

Where This Requirement Actually Comes From

The legal foundation here sits with the Department of Transportation, not DOL. Under federal motor carrier safety regulations, a commercial motor vehicle driver must meet several qualifications before they can legally operate, including being at least 21 years old, holding a valid CDL, passing a road test, and being physically qualified to drive.

One of those qualifications has always required that a driver can read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, understand highway traffic signs and signals in English, respond to official inquiries, and make entries on reports and records. That requirement is not new. It has been part of federal motor carrier law for a long time.

What is new is the enforcement posture behind it. An executive order signed in April 2025 rescinded older guidance that had allowed more flexibility in how this requirement was assessed and enforced. Following that order, enforcement policy now states that a driver found out of compliance with the English proficiency standard will be cited and placed out of service, with a narrow exception only for drivers operating in border commercial zones along the U.S. Mexico border.

DOL's new guidance builds directly on that enforcement shift. Since the English proficiency standard is a real legal requirement drivers must meet regardless of immigration status, DOL is now requiring employers to state that requirement explicitly in their job orders and applications, rather than leaving it implied.

What Employers Must Now Include

If your H-2A or H-2B position requires the worker to operate a commercial motor vehicle, your job order and application now need to include language that mirrors the federal standard. DOL's guidance provides this as compliant example language:

The worker must be able to read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, understand highway traffic signs and signals in English, respond to official inquiries, and make entries on reports and records.

That language, or something consistent with it, needs to appear in the job order and the application itself. It is a fairly short addition, but it is now a required one for any position involving CMV operation.

This Applies Even If a CDL Is Not Required

This is the detail most likely to catch employers off guard. Many agricultural operations have drivers who operate trucks or other vehicles under exemptions that do not require a commercial driver's license. DOL's guidance is explicit that the English proficiency requirement still applies to those drivers even when a CDL is not required, as long as the vehicle qualifies as a commercial motor vehicle operating in interstate commerce.

In other words, a driver being exempt from holding a CDL does not exempt them from the English proficiency standard. If the role involves operating what federal regulations define as a commercial motor vehicle, the requirement applies regardless of CDL status.

What Happens If the Language Is Missing

DOL has been direct about the consequences here. If a job order or application involving CMV operation does not include the required English proficiency standard, the application may receive a Notice of Deficiency. If the employer does not correct it, the application can be denied outright. This applies across H-2A, H-2B, and PERM filings.

This is a clean, avoidable problem. The fix is a few sentences in the job order. But if it gets missed, it can cost real time in an already time sensitive filing process.

A Few Other Things Worth Knowing

DOL's guidance also notes a few additional points worth being aware of, even though they are not strictly required.

Translation tools, including interpreters, cue cards, I-Speak cards, and smartphone translation apps, are no longer permitted to assist a driver during an English proficiency assessment. The concern from DOT's perspective is that these tools can mask whether a driver can actually communicate in English on their own, which is the entire point of the requirement.

Employers may also choose to include additional detail in their job orders beyond the minimum required language, such as noting that drivers should be able to discuss hours of service, logbook entries, trip information, or the contents of shipping papers in English, or that they should be able to understand standard U.S. highway signage. None of this is required, but DOL suggests it as an option for employers who want to be thorough upfront.

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