Florida’s public university system, one of the nation’s largest, froze hiring via H-1B visas, emulating a move by Texas to restrict a program that’s become a focal point for President Donald Trump’s broader immigration crackdown.
The Board of Governors that oversees Florida’s 12 public universities voted 14-to-2 to not hire any candidates who need such visas this year and study whether their past use had disadvantaged US workers. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ordered the board to end the practice in October, claiming universities were using them to replace US citizens.
The board members who voted against the measure cited concerns that it would hurt Florida’s ability to attract the best talent.
“This sends a message to people looking at Florida that this is not a place where they can come to work,” said Carson Dale, a board member who represents the system’s 430,000 students and voted against the proposal.
DeSantis said in October that “universities across the country are importing foreign workers on H-1B visas instead of hiring Americans.”
Florida’s decision followed a similar move by Texas. The H-1B program, one of the primary vehicles for bringing skilled, white-collar workers into the country, has been a focus of the Trump administration’s broader crackdown on immigration that includes more high-profile initiatives aimed at expanding border enforcement and deportations.
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In September, Trump issued a proclamation that imposed a new, $100,000 fee on H-1B applications and prioritized higher-paid applicants, leading business groups to warn that the changes could make it harder for big employers to compete internationally for the best talent.
Florida’s public universities sought H-1B visas for about 600 employees in fiscal 2025, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services. Proponents say the visas allow Florida to compete with universities globally for the best academic minds.
Across the US, colleges apply for thousands of H-1B visas each year, mainly for laboratories, engineering programs, medical research centers and high-tech fields like artificial intelligence.
According to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, just over half of US postdoctoral researchers in the health, engineering and science fields had H-1B or other temporary visas as of 2023.