One high-profile NIL complication has flown under the radar. 

More than 20,000 athletes come from abroad each year to play in the NCAA. But it’s possible that athletes on student visas won’t be able to make money off NIL at all. 

The Complication

College athletes who come to U.S. schools from abroad usually require “F” visas, which allow them into the country for educational purposes.  

Athletes with these visas can only “do limited on-campus employment here and there,” Robert Seiger, an immigration lawyer and partner of Archer & Greiner P.C.’s sports law practice, told FOS.

NIL laws will allow athletes to sign endorsements, work at or run sports clinics, and even sign autographs. But if international athletes participate in those deals, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services could revoke their student visas.

“There’s no question in my mind that that government entity would be like, ‘Wait a minute,’” Seiger said.

Potential Solutions

In the immediate future, there’s an easy “solution” for international athletes who don’t want to lose their visas: Don’t profit from NIL.

The way the government “ultimately perceives” NIL activity could determine whether international athletes can sign NIL deals, Seiger said. Perhaps immigration authorities will decide that NIL compensation falls under the umbrella of limited, on-campus employment.

Otherwise, advocacy and lobbying could successfully push for new laws that would allow athletes to keep their F visa status.

If they’re making money, could athletes apply for visas as professionals? That possibility is a long way away. The NCAA has spent millions in court fighting for amateur status, and shows no signs of giving that up anytime soon. 

“This is like a low-simmer issue because there’s so much uncertainty,” Seiger said. When laws take effect, “I think it’ll be an issue that comes more to the front.”

“Like, OK, now we’re faced with the reality.”

Florida has long been ground zero on NIL laws, given that its law has the earliest start date of July 1, 2021. 

But two weeks ago, the Florida state legislature almost pushed back the date of its NIL law, causing 48 hours of chaos.

The fiasco illustrates the fragility of the NIL landscape — and plenty of uncertainty remains just seven weeks before laws take effect.

Midnight Appointment

On April 28, State Senator Travis Hutson quietly introduced an amendment to an unrelated bill that would delay the NIL law’s effective date until 2022. He did so two short days before the end of the session.

The bill, which also included an amendment that would prohibit transgender athletes from playing women’s sports, passed.

When word of the NIL component of the bill spread late that Wednesday, “the industry went into scramble mode,” Ahmad Elhawli, founder and CEO of Sportsfinda, told FOS. “We were contacting each other, reaching out to lawyers, reaching out to officials in government … It was MADNESS.”

Florida quarterbacks, like Miami’s D’Eriq King (pictured) joined in to speak out against the delay. So did football coaches like FSU’s Mike Norvell and Florida’s Dan Mullen.

Over that 48 hours, the outcry caused the legislature to pass another amendment that would reinstate the 2021 date — just in time for the session to end.

Potential Effects

More than 10 other states have passed similar laws, four of which launch July 1 — and all of which have their own idiosyncrasies. 

States passed NIL laws so they wouldn’t lose their recruiting advantage — four of five states with laws taking effect July 1 host SEC schools. Florida “created this urgency for states to try to give their institutions the ability to compete in another category,” INFLCR CEO Jim Cavale told FOS.

But if Florida’s law had been pushed back, companies worried that other states would follow — and that urgency would disappear.

In addition, NIL companies have relied on Florida to begin building their businesses and connecting with potential clients.

“Florida, for us, is our beta market,” Dreamfield co-founder and CEO Luis Pardillo told FOS. “That’s where we’re focusing our product.” 

If Florida’s NIL law had been delayed, “I’m not sure we would have survived, to be honest with you.”

If Congress or the NCAA doesn’t set a nationwide precedent by July 1, schools in states with NIL laws will receive major recruiting advantages. 

NCAA President Mark Emmert has said in private that athletes who participate in these deals won’t be punished. But the NCAA hasn’t made an official, public statement confirming this.

Lobbying Attempts

Congress, obviously, has other things on its mind. But this week, Emmert traveled to Washington to lobby for a federal NIL law to pass by July 1, he told USA Today.

Of the few federal bills proposed, the NCAA has really only sung the praises of one: the Student Athlete Level Playing Field Act. It’s a rather tempered, bipartisan bill written by Reps. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-Oh.).

“Their House bill will strengthen the college athlete experience and support the NCAA and its members,” the NCAA said in part on April 26. 

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), who co-authored one of the more liberal bills, said during an Aspen Institute discussion in February that he plans to make sure Congress enacts a law by July 1. But he cautioned, “Don’t underestimate our ability to take all the time that we have until the final hours of a deadline.”

Rules at Home

Of course, Emmert could also maximize his efforts — and save travel expenses — by staying at NCAA headquarters and helping the governing body finally vote on its own rules.

And while those rules wouldn’t overrule disparities in state laws, they would at least assuage the pending recruiting nightmare.

Emmert told The New York Times he wants the NCAA to vote on the NIL rules that have been collecting dust since last fall. But that probably won’t happen until the Alston Supreme Court ruling is handed down in May or June, which will decide if the NCAA’s legislation violates antitrust law.

What’s more, the NCAA appears to be struggling to find a company to fill the “third-party administrator” role to keep track of NIL deals. 

On May 10, INFLCR bowed out of the running due to “conflict of interest” concerns, given that it would be overseeing its partner schools.