U.S. English proficiency requirements: What Canadian motor carriers need to know

U.S. enforcement of English language proficiency requirements for commercial drivers has changed materially over the past year. While the underlying rule has existed for decades, recent policy and enforcement shifts have significantly increased operational and compliance risk for motor carriers engaged in U.S. interstate commerce. For Canadian carriers and the businesses that rely on them, understanding these changes is now essential to managing cross‑border operations.

The legal foundation has teeth again

At the core of the issue is a long‑standing federal regulation: 49 CFR § 391.11(b)(2). This rule requires that commercial drivers be able to read and speak English sufficiently to converse with the public, understand highway signs and signals, respond to official inquiries and complete required records.

Importantly for business stakeholders, this is not a fluency requirement. Drivers do not need perfect or sophisticated English. However, they must demonstrate enough proficiency to safely operate a commercial motor vehicle in the United States. The rule applies broadly to all drivers engaged in U.S. interstate commerce, regardless of citizenship or where their commercial licence was issued.

What has changed is not the rule itself, but the consequences of non‑compliance.

From paper violation to immediate shutdown

In 2025, U.S. policy shifted decisively toward stricter enforcement. An executive action directed federal regulators to abandon prior guidance that discouraged placing drivers out of service for English proficiency violations. Regulators were instructed to revise inspection procedures and out‑of‑service criteria accordingly.

As a result, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) amended its Out‑of‑Service (OOS) Criteria, effective June 25, 2025, to make insufficient English proficiency an explicit ground for immediately placing a driver out of service during a roadside inspection. This designation applies only within the United States, but its impact on cross‑border operations is substantial.

For businesses, this represents a shift from a manageable compliance issue to a real‑time operational risk. A driver who fails an English proficiency assessment can no longer proceed with a load, regardless of delivery schedules, customer commitments or downstream consequences.

How enforcement works at the roadside

English proficiency is assessed during roadside inspections using a two‑part process.

First, the inspecting officer conducts a driver interview in English. Drivers must answer basic operational questions – such as what they are hauling, where the load originated, their destination, employer and driving hours – without using any aids. Interpreters, translation apps, cue cards or assistance from dispatch are not permitted. The officer’s focus is simple: Can the driver understand the questions and respond clearly enough to be understood?

Second, the driver must complete a traffic sign recognition assessment. The driver is shown four traffic signs and must correctly identify and explain the meaning of at least three. These signs may include regulatory, warning or guide signs commonly encountered on U.S. highways.

Failure in either part of the assessment can result in an immediate out‑of‑service order.

Business consequences extend well beyond the driver

For carriers and their customers, the impact of an OOS order is rarely confined to the roadside.

An out‑of‑service driver cannot complete the delivery. The truck must be parked, sometimes in unsecured locations. Carriers must arrange for driver replacement, load recovery or vehicle repatriation – often at short notice and significant expense. Delays can trigger contractual penalties, missed delivery windows and strained customer relationships. Immobilized equipment may also face heightened cargo theft risk.

In addition, English proficiency violations are recorded on inspection reports and can negatively affect a carrier’s safety rating. Poor safety metrics may, in turn, lead to increased enforcement attention, customer scrutiny and higher insurance costs. In more serious or repeated cases, regulatory action against the driver’s eligibility to operate in interstate commerce is also possible.

From a business perspective, what was once a regulatory footnote now has direct financial, contractual and reputational implications.

What the data shows

Violation data from recent years underscores why this issue deserves management attention. Reported English proficiency violations more than doubled in 2025 compared to prior years, reflecting the new enforcement posture. While U.S. drivers account for the vast majority of violations, the key takeaway for Canadian carriers is that every violation now carries the same immediate operational consequence: An out‑of‑service order.

Even a relatively small number of incidents can have outsized effects on service reliability and customer confidence.

Proactive compliance as risk management

Given the stakes, proactive compliance is best understood as a risk management strategy, not merely a regulatory exercise.

Many carriers are responding by implementing internal English proficiency assessments before assigning drivers to U.S. routes, conducting mock roadside interviews and testing traffic sign recognition under inspection‑like conditions. Language training – whether through targeted courses, coaching or self‑directed tools – can be a cost‑effective alternative to absorbing the losses associated with a single failed inspection.

Operational controls also matter. Restricting U.S. routes to drivers who have demonstrated sufficient proficiency and reinforcing English‑only communication between dispatch and U.S.‑bound drivers can help reduce exposure. While these measures may reduce operational flexibility, they provide greater certainty in cross‑border execution.

Key takeaways

Enhanced enforcement of U.S. English proficiency requirements represents a significant compliance shift for companies involved in cross‑border trucking. The rule itself is not new, but the consequences are. Immediate out‑of‑service orders transform language proficiency from an abstract regulatory concern into a tangible operational risk.

Businesses that depend on reliable U.S. trucking capacity should ensure that their carriers understand and are managing this exposure. In today’s enforcement environment, proactive planning, assessment and training are no longer optional – they are essential to maintaining continuity, controlling costs and protecting commercial relationships.

Owner-operators play a vital role in keeping goods moving across Canada, yet the contracts that govern these relationships are often complex, inconsistent and difficult to navigate. To help mitigate these issues, MLT Aikins recently published The Owner-Operator’s Guide to Trucking Contracts in Western Canada. This free guide was designed to give Canadian – and particularly Western Canadian – owner-operators the practical knowledge they need to understand, negotiate and protect themselves through well-crafted trucking contracts. Download the full guide here. 

Share