U.S. Revokes 20,000 Mexican Driver Visas

U.S. officials have revoked work visas for roughly 20,000 Mexican truck drivers over the past year, according to Mexico's National Chamber of Freight Transportation, known as Canacar.

The trade group said the cancellations took place between April 2025 and April 2026 as U.S. agencies increased enforcement of commercial-driver rules. Canacar President Augusto Ramos Melo said about 30,000 foreign drivers have been removed from U.S. operations during that period, with Mexican drivers accounting for about two-thirds of the total.

The core issue is cabotage: foreign drivers may bring freight into the U.S. and return home, but they generally cannot haul domestic point-to-point loads inside the country without proper authorization.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said U.S. officials are working with Customs and Border Protection to pull visas from drivers who violate those rules. He said about 3,200 Mexican commercial drivers have had visas revoked since January for alleged cabotage violations alone.

The driver-supply pressure matters because Mexico remains the largest U.S. trading partner. FreightWaves reported that two-way U.S.-Mexico trade reached $86.04 billion in April, up 23.4% from a year earlier.

Canacar also estimates Mexico is short about 96,000 truck drivers. If enforcement keeps sidelining cross-border operators while freight demand improves, shippers and carriers could see tighter border capacity and higher spot pressure in lanes tied to Mexico trade.