TN Status

What are TN Visas/Status?

A unique non-immigrant classification originally created as result of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the TN (for Trade NAFTA) visa exists solely for the benefit of Canadian and Mexican citizens.

In September 2018, the United States, Mexico, and Canada reached an agreement to replace NAFTA with the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), and all three countries had ratified it by March 2020. The USMCA took effect on July 1, 2020.

Under the USMCA, a Canadian or Mexican citizen may temporarily enter into the United States and engage in certain designated professional services. Although the TN visa classification originated with the promise of facilitating trade in services under transparent criteria, this is hardly the case in today's U.S. immigration environment.

U.S. immigration's increasingly enforcement-minded attitude — which frequently results in arbitrary denials or allegations of immigration violations that carry severe penalties — underscores the importance of a diligently and well-prepared TN visa application. With law offices on both sides of the border, Millar & Hayes is uniquely situated to assist in TN visa applications. This is true not just because of our convenient border locations, but because of our extensive experience handling a large, ongoing number of TN and other professional visas. 

Requirements: Eligibility Factors

Education & Credentials

The majority of the TN visa occupational categories require some form of educational credential. Most require a bachelor's degree, while some also offer as an alternative for qualification possession of a post-secondary diploma and three years of experience. Education and credential or licensing requirements are specified for each profession. An individual may qualify for a TN visa without a degree or diploma in three categories:

• Disaster relief insurance claims adjuster
• Management consultant
• Scientific technician

Immigration officials routinely require a specific degree in the occupational field in order to qualify for TN visa status. This is often contrary to the government's own guidance on the issue. U.S. immigration memoranda state that the degree possessed by the TN applicant “should be in the field or in a closely related field.”

TN applicants who possess a degree from an educational institution outside of the United States, Canada, or Mexico must obtain an academic evaluation by a reliable credentials evaluation service that specializes in such evaluations. Unlike the H-1B category, an applicant for a TN cannot combine education and experience and obtain a degree equivalency in order to meet the bachelor degree requirements for a TN. Where a TN occupational category requires a bachelor's or licenciatura degree, an individual may satisfy this requirement by possessing a degree from an educational institution outside of the USMCA countries (from a college or university outside the U.S., Canada, or Mexico).

TN Status Occupational Categories

The TN visa broad occupational categories are:

• General
• Medical
• Scientific
• Teaching

An individual may apply for TN status under USMCA in one of the several dozen occupations set forth in USMCA. The USMCA TN laws and regulations do not specifically define the types of positions or job duties permissible under the TN occupational categories. A citizen of Canada or Mexico may enter the U.S. under TN status “to engage in business activities at a professional level” in one of the professions set forth in Appendix 1603.D.1. INA § 214 (e); 8 C.F.R. § 214.6 (a). For example, a position may qualify for TN status under a given category if in order to successfully complete the duties of the position, an individual must possess one of the credentials listed for that category. If a position requires a bachelor's degree, then the position should be eligible for TN visa status under that category.

Documentation

Documents for TN visa application for land or air port-of-entry applications:

• Evidence of citizenship and entry document
• Executed TN support letter
• Copy of applicant's resume
• Copy of applicant's degrees, transcripts, diplomas or certificates
• Executed attestation letter of supervising prfessional (Sci/Tech TN)
• Copy of supervising professional's degrees, diplomas, certificatdes (Sci/Tech TN)
• Executed consulting agreement (management consultant TN and independent contractor)
• Copies of previous experience letters evidencing five years of experience
• Previous experience letters (if necessary)
• Academic / experience evaluation (if degree issued outside NAFTA country)
• Informational literature on employer
• Payment for the I-94 filing fee

Additional documentation to submit if filing through the UCIS:

• Completed and executed Form I-129
• Completed and executed Form I-129 free trade supplement
• Copy of valid passport face page
• Copy of document evidencing current non-immigrant status in U.S.
• Payment in the amount of $320 for I-129 petition filing fee

TN Visa vs. TN status

Individuals new to U.S. immigration law and unfamiliar with the provisions for Canadian and Mexican citizens often confuse a TN visa with TN non-immigrant status. There is a significant difference between a TN visa and TN non-immigrant status. 

TN Visa Professions

A Canadian individual must be coming to the U.S. to work temporarily in one of the professions listed in the appendix to the North American Free Trade Agreement. These are the listed professions:

Credentials

In order to pursue a TN visa an applicant must have evidence that they have the necessary credentials to be considered a professional in one of the Schedule 2 fields listed below. Call or email us with any questions that you may have. We are always happy to let you speak directly with a qualified immigration lawyer.

PROFESSION	MINIMUM EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
Accountant	Baccalaureate Degree; or C.P.A, C.A., C.G.A., or C.M.A.
Architect	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Computer Systems Analyst	Baccalaureate Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post Secondary Certificate and 3 years experience
Disaster Relief Insurance Claims Adjuster	Baccalaureate Degree and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims; or three years experience in claims adjustment and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims
Economist	Baccalaureate Degree
Engineer	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Forester	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Graphic Designer	Baccalaureate Degree; or post-secondary diploma and three years experience
Hotel Manager	Baccalaureate Degree in hotel/restaurant management; or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate in hotel/restaurant management and three years experience in hotel/restaurant management
Industrial Designer	Baccalaureate Degree; or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate, and three years experience
Interior Designer	Baccalaureate Degree; or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate, and three years experience
Land Surveyor	Baccalaureate Degree or state/provincial/federal license
Landscape Architect	Baccalaureate Degree
Lawyer (including Notary in the province of Quebec)	L.L.B., J.D., L.L.L., B.C.L., degree; or membership in a state/provincial bar
Librarian	M.L.S. or B.L.S. (for which another Baccalaureate Degree was prerequisite)
Management Consultant	Baccalaureate Degree; or equivalent professional experience as established by statement or professional credential attesting to five years experience as a management consultant , or five years experience in a field of specialty related to the consulting agreement
Mathematician (including statistician)	Baccalaureate Degree
Range Manager/Range Conservationist	Baccalaureate Degree
Research Assistant (working in a post-secondary educational institution)	Baccalaureate Degree
Scientific Technician/Technologist	Possession of (a) theoretical knowledge of any of the following disciplines: agricultural sciences, astronomy, biology, chemistry, engineering, forestry, geology, geophysics, meteorology, or physics; and (b) the ability to solve practical problems in any of those disciplines, or the ability to apply principles of any of those disciplines to basic or applied research
Social Worker	Baccalaureate Degree
Silviculturist (including forestry)	Baccalaureate Degree
Teacher: College	Baccalaureate Degree
Teacher: Seminary	Baccalaureate Degree
Teacher: University	Baccalaureate Degree
Technical Publications Writer	Baccalaureate Degree, or post-secondary diploma or post-secondary certificate, and three years experience
Urban Planner (including Geographer)	Baccalaureate Degree
Vocational Counselor	Baccalaureate Degree

Credentials: Medical

In order to pursue a TN visa an applicant must have evidence that they have the necessary credentials to be considered a professional in one of the Schedule 2 NAFTA fields listed below. Call or email us with any questions that you may have. We are always happy to let you speak directly with a NAFTA immigration attorney. To view credential requirements for medical professions, go to the Credentials: Medical tab.

PROFESSION	MINIMUM EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
Dentist	D.D.S., D.M.D., Doctor en Odontologia
Dietician	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Medical Lab Technologist (Canada) Medical Technologist (Mexico and U.S.)	Baccalaureate Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post Secondary Certificate and 3 years experience
Nutritionist	Baccalaureate Degree
Occupational Therapist	Baccalaureate Degree; or state provincial license
Pharmacist	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Physician (teaching or research only)	M.D., Doctor en Medicina; or state/provincial license
Physiotherapist/Physical Therapist	Baccalaureate Degree; or state/provincial license
Psychologist	State/provincial license; degree
Recreational Therapist	Baccalaureate Degree
Registered Nurse	State/provincial license degree
Veterinarian	D.V.M., D.M.V., or Doctor en Veterinaria; or state/provincial license

Credentials: Science

In order to pursue a TN visa an applicant must have evidence that they have the necessary credentials to be considered a professional in one of the Schedule 2 NAFTA fields listed below. Call or email us with any questions that you may have. We are always happy to let you speak directly with a NAFTA immigration lawyer. To view credential requirements for professions in scientific fields, see below.

The minimum education requirement is a Baccalaureate Degree for each of the following professions:

Agricultural (Agronomist), Animal Breeder, Animal Scientist, Apiculturist, Astronomer, Biochemist, Chemist, Dairy Scientist, Entomologist, Epidemiologist, Geneticist, Geochemist, Geophysicist, Horticulturist, Meteorologist, Pharmacologist, Oceanographer, Physicist, Plant Breeder, Poultry, Scientist, Soil Scientist, Zoologist.