Florida is making English the exclusive language for all driver’s license exams, a major policy change that state officials say is aimed at improving road safety and ensuring consistent understanding of traffic laws across the board.
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) announced that beginning Friday, all driver’s license knowledge and skills examinations—including commercial and non-commercial tests—will be administered only in English. The new rule will also apply to oral examinations and will eliminate the use of interpreters or translation services during testing.
Previously, knowledge exams for most non-commercial licenses were available in multiple languages, while commercial driver’s license (CDL) and learner’s permit exams were limited to English and Spanish. Under the new policy, all tests — including written, oral, and skills-based exams — will be conducted entirely in English.
The department said its testing systems have been updated statewide to remove non-English materials and prohibit translation services.
FLHSMV emphasized that clear communication and a consistent understanding of traffic laws are critical to ensuring safe roadways.
The policy has also drawn strong support from national transportation safety advocates who have long argued that proficiency in English is essential for all licensed drivers, particularly for commercial truck operators.
James Lamb, executive director of the Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC), described Florida’s reform as a long-overdue step toward enforcing existing federal safety regulations.
Lamb also credited the Trump administration for reinstating enforcement measures tied to English proficiency requirements for truckers. “We have also called for truckers found not in compliance with the ELP regulation to be placed out of service, a policy that has returned as of June 26, 2025, by order of President Trump,” he said.
The Sunshine State becomes the first in years to formally eliminate multilingual testing for all classes of driver’s licenses — a move that advocates say could spur a broader national trend toward uniform English-only standards.
This week, the Florida Senate voted 29–5 to approve a bill that would prohibit undocumented immigrants from operating commercial motor vehicles in the state.
The Florida Senate voted 29–5 to approve a bill that would forbid undocumented immigrants from operating commercial motor vehicles in the state.
The measure was approved by the Senate along party lines.
Sen. Don Gaetz, a Republican from Pensacola, introduced SB 86 in response to a fatal collision that occurred close to the Florida Turnpike last year.
If law enforcement stops an undocumented immigrant driving a commercial vehicle, they would have to detain the driver and turn them over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or other federal immigration authorities.
Additionally, the commercial vehicle in question would be seized.
A $50,000 fine payable to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, as well as any expenses related to impoundment and notification before the vehicle’s release, could be imposed on businesses that own, lease, or operate a truck driven by an undocumented immigrant.
Additionally, motor carriers associated with such infractions would be prohibited from doing business in Florida in the future.
The proposal is a component of a larger effort recently by Florida lawmakers to strengthen enforcement against undocumented immigrants employed in industries subject to regulations.
According to Gaetz, the bill was inspired by a collision that occurred in August of last year when Harjinder Singh, operating an eighteen-wheeler, made an illegal U-turn and a car struck the truck, killing three people.
The charges against Singh include three counts of manslaughter and vehicular homicide.
After Singh crossed the border between the United States and Mexico, California granted him a commercial driver’s license, according to Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. He failed a commercial driver’s license exam ten times in two months in Washington state in 2023, according to the authorities.
Gaetz also brought up another case from September 2025 in which a semi-truck driver was charged with being in the country illegally after a collision on a Southern California freeway resulted in three fatalities and four injuries.
Legislators are currently debating immigration enforcement and workplace restrictions across Florida, and they have sent the bill to the House for consideration.
Gov. Ron DeSantis would have to sign it if the House approved it.
If SB 86 is passed into law, it could have an impact on trucking companies that operate in Florida and impose additional restrictions on the enforcement of commercial driver’s licenses.
The law would go into effect on July 1st, 2026.
