2025 Wisconsin Act 240 Lets DACA Recipients Obtain Professional Licenses

(WISCONSIN, UNITED STATES) — Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers signed 2025 Wisconsin Act 240 into law on April 9, 2026, opening professional licenses in the state to DACA recipients who hold a valid federal work permit.

The law lets recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals seek professional and occupational licenses across Wisconsin if they possess a valid, unexpired Employment Authorization Document issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Any license issued under the new measure remains valid only as long as that federal document remains valid.

Evers cast the change as a matter of work and fairness. “In Wisconsin, we’ve always believed that if you work hard, obey the law, pay taxes, and play by the rules. you should have a fair shot at pursuing the American Dream, including having the opportunity to join our professional workforce,” he said.

Wisconsin had long barred DACA recipients from many licensed fields even though they could work legally under federal authorization. The new law applies to people granted DACA under the original 2012 program requirements, and it does not extend to people who might receive deferred action for the first time after the bill’s effective date.

That change reaches a wide range of jobs. Registered nurses, dentists, teachers, emergency medical technicians, plumbers, barbers, real estate agents and electricians are among the professions now open under the law.

The measure moved through Madison with bipartisan support at a time when employers faced a tight labor market. Wisconsin had roughly 140,000 job openings and 90,000 active job seekers, figures supporters used to argue that the state was turning away trained workers it had already educated.

Backers also argued that the old rules pushed graduates across state lines. They said Wisconsin was losing DACA-eligible students from its universities to Illinois and Minnesota, where those workers could enter licensed fields.

State Rep. Amaad Rivera-Wagner tied the bill to a broader political contrast. “At a time when we are seeing cruelty and chaos coming out of the federal government, this bill shows Wisconsin can choose a different path,” he said.

The state measure rests on a federal document and arrives amid a sharper federal debate over non-citizen licensing. Wisconsin now requires a DHS-issued work permit for licensure, but on February 25, 2026, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem backed the Dalilah Law, a federal proposal that would bar states from granting commercial driver’s licenses to non-citizens.

Noem said, “Allowing illegal aliens. to obtain CDLs to operate 18-wheelers and transport hazardous materials on America’s roads is reckless and incredibly dangerous to public safety.” Her statement appeared in a [DHS announcement](https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/02/25/secretary-noem-backs-dalilah-law).

USCIS data cited in support of the Wisconsin law put the state’s active DACA population at about 5,100 to 5,800 in late 2025 and early 2026. That range gives the first sense of how many people may now gain access to licenses that had been out of reach.

The effect is likely to be felt most in occupations that require state approval before a person can practice, even after earning a degree or completing training. A nursing graduate, a teacher candidate or an apprentice electrician could hold legal work authorization and still remain blocked until this change.

Supporters said the law clears that barrier for thousands of workers already living in Wisconsin and already paying taxes. State advocates and the Migration Policy Institute estimated that this population contributes about $48 million a year in local and state taxes.

Those numbers helped turn the debate away from a familiar immigration argument and toward labor needs. Republicans and Democrats backing the bill framed it as a workforce measure, arguing that Wisconsin had little reason to sideline residents who already had federal permission to work.

The law’s limits remain clear. It does not create immigration status, and it does not replace the federal work authorization on which the license depends. If the Employment Authorization Document expires, the license tied to it expires as well.

That linkage places state regulators and applicants on the same timetable as federal immigration administration. A person seeking a Wisconsin license under the law must keep a current DHS-issued EAD, and the state’s approval lasts no longer than that federal validity period.

Act 240 also narrows eligibility to the original DACA framework created in 2012. That means the benefit attaches to a defined group of recipients rather than any future category of deferred action that might emerge.

In practical terms, the measure opens doors in fields that touch daily life across the state. Nurses staff hospitals and clinics. Teachers fill classrooms. EMTs answer emergency calls. Plumbers, electricians and barbers work in local businesses that rely on state licensing rules before they can hire.

Wisconsin’s action stands out because licensing battles often turn on technical state statutes rather than broad immigration law. A person may have federal approval to work in the United States, yet still need a separate state license to teach, treat patients, sell real estate or perform skilled trades.

That divide has shaped the experience of many DACA recipients for years. They could study in Wisconsin, train in Wisconsin and work in some jobs in Wisconsin, but remain shut out of professions that require state credentials.

The bill that became Act 240 began as Assembly Bill 759. Readers can review the measure in a [Wisconsin Legislative Council act memo](https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2025/related/lc_act_memo/ab759), which outlines the changes made to state licensing law.

Evers’ office described the measure in a [press release from the governor](https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WIGOV/bulletins/3953535). Milwaukee officials also welcomed the change in a [City of Milwaukee statement](https://city.milwaukee.gov/CommonCouncil/District12/PressReleases/2026/Governor-Evers-signs-bill-to-remove-barriers-for-DACA-recipients).

For DACA recipients in Wisconsin, the result is now written into state law: a valid federal work permit can open the door to state-issued professional licenses that were once closed, and a workforce short of workers has one fewer barrier between training and the job.