Florida Public Universities Provisionally Cease Hiring Foreigners on H1-B Visas

Articles | March 4, 2026 | by Catholics for Catholics

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The measures apply to the 12 public universities included in the State University System of Florida.

By Catholics for Catholics

Florida’s public universities will provisionally cease hiring foreign faculty members using the H-1B visa program, which ​permits employers to take on highly skilled professionals in ‌specialized professions.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis directed schools last October to crack down on what he described as “visa abuse” in ​higher education, according to a story by The Epoch Times. The Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the state’s public university system, temporarily halted the hiring of foreign faculty and staff through the H-1B visa program on March 2.

Each board of trustees is instructed to refrain from using the H-1B visa program to hire any new employees through Jan. 5, 2027, according to a regulation posted on the board’s website.

The directives will be enforced upon 12 public universities, including the State University System of Florida, which are supervised by the board.

“Universities across the country are importing foreign workers on H-1B visas instead of hiring Americans who are qualified and available to do the job,” DeSantis said in 2025. “We will not tolerate H-1B abuse in Florida institutions. That’s why I have directed the Florida Board of Governors to end this practice.”

🚨BREAKING: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis just ABOLISHED H-1B VISAS from being used at state universities.

"We can do it with Florida RESIDENTS or AMERICANS! If we can't? Then man, we need to REALLY look deeply at what's going on with this situation!"

pic.twitter.com/1QTlNDAq3X

— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) February 11, 2026

The H-1B visa program permits companies to momentarily hire foreign workers for jobs that require “the theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge and a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent in the specific specialty,” according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Foreign workers eligible for H-1B status are limited to 65,000 annually, with another 20,000 visas for those possessing advanced degrees, the department has said.

In 12 ⁠Florida schools, more than 600 ​beneficiaries were approved for H-1B visas​, according to data released by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.