TN VISA · USMCA PROFESSIONALS
TN Visa Lawyers: USMCA Professionals
The fast track for Canadian and Mexican professionals. When the case is clean.
As TN visa lawyers, we help Canadian and Mexican professionals work in the United States under the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement, and help US employers bring them on board. The TN is one of the quickest work-authorization routes available, but it rewards precision: the right profession, the right credentials, the right employer letter, and a clean read on intent. We prepare TN cases that hold up at the border and on renewal.
THE BASICS
What is a TN visa?
The TN is a nonimmigrant work category created by the trade agreement between the United States, Mexico, and Canada: the USMCA, which replaced NAFTA. It lets citizens of Canada and Mexico work in the US in a professional occupation on an agreed list, provided they have the required qualifications and a US job offer in that profession. There is no annual cap and no lottery, and it can be renewed as long as the underlying work continues. The TN trades breadth for speed: it covers only listed professions, but for those it covers, it is one of the most efficient work visas on the board.
WHO QUALIFIES
The USMCA professional list
The TN is only available for professions named on the USMCA list, and each listed profession comes with its own minimum credential, usually a specific degree or license. Engineers, scientists, accountants, management consultants, economists, university teachers, and a range of healthcare and technical professionals appear on it. The match has to be exact: your degree and the offered role both need to line up with a listed profession and its stated requirement. Where a role is close to but not squarely within a listed category, the TN may not be the right tool, and we will tell you so rather than gamble on a border officer's read.
Engineers and scientists
Accountants and economists
Management consultants
University and college teachers
Various healthcare professionals
Computer systems analysts and other technical roles
TWO PROCESSES
Canadian and Mexican citizens: different routes
Canadian citizens
Canadian citizens can generally apply for TN status directly at a US port of entry (or, in some cases, a preflight/preclearance location) with the required documentation, without first obtaining a visa stamp at a consulate. That makes the Canadian TN process notably fast. But "fast" is not the same as "informal." The officer decides on the spot, so the paperwork has to be complete and persuasive the first time.
Mexican citizens
Mexican citizens generally apply for a TN visa at a US consulate before traveling, then present it at the port of entry. The consular step adds time and a formal interview, so preparation matters even more. We help Mexican professionals assemble a consulate-ready package so the interview confirms a strong case rather than exposing a weak one.
THE CORE DOCUMENT
The employer support letter
The heart of a TN case is the employer's support letter. It has to identify the offered position as one of the listed USMCA professions, describe the duties in a way that genuinely matches that profession, state the qualifications you hold, and set out the terms and anticipated duration of the work. A vague or mismatched letter is the fastest way to a TN refusal, because it invites the officer to conclude the role is not really the listed profession. We draft the letter with the officer's checklist in mind, so the position, the duties, and your credentials all point to the same conclusion.
STATUS, VISA & RENEWAL
TN status, the TN visa, and renewals
"Status" is not the same as "visa"
For Canadians, the TN is often a matter of status granted at entry rather than a visa stamped in a passport; for Mexicans, there is an actual TN visa obtained at a consulate. The distinction matters for travel, extensions, and change of employer. Being admitted in TN status is what authorizes the work; the visa (where required) is what lets you travel to the border to ask for it.
Renewing the TN
The TN is granted in periods of up to three years and can be renewed, in principle, indefinitely, as long as the professional work continues and the nonimmigrant nature of the stay remains genuine. Renewal can be done at a port of entry or, in appropriate cases, by filing an extension with USCIS. We manage renewals so authorization never lapses and each extension keeps the case consistent with the one before it.
READ THIS CAREFULLY
The intent caution: TN and the green card
The TN is a nonimmigrant category that assumes you intend to return home when the work ends. It does not tolerate immigrant intent the way the H-1B or L-1 does, which means that visibly pursuing a green card at the wrong moment can jeopardize a TN entry or renewal. This does not make it impossible to move from a TN to permanent residency (many people do), but the sequence and timing have to be handled with real care, often by transitioning to a dual-intent category first. This is exactly the kind of decision you want counsel on before you act, not after. We map the path so a green-card goal does not quietly undermine the TN that got you here.
WHY DELGADO PURDY LAW
TN counsel that keeps the case clean and consistent.
A TN can be granted in minutes at a border or turned away just as quickly, so the preparation is the whole job. You work directly with your attorney, in English, Spanish, Portuguese, or French, from offices in Boynton Beach, Lake Worth, and Atlanta. We confirm the profession match, build the employer letter, prepare you for the port of entry or the consulate, and keep every renewal consistent, while planning carefully if permanent residency is part of the long-term picture.
COMMON QUESTIONS
TN questions we hear most often.
Citizens of Canada and Mexico who have a US job offer in one of the professions named on the USMCA list, and who hold the specific credential that profession requires. Permanent residents of Canada or Mexico are not eligible on citizenship alone. The TN is tied to citizenship of those two countries. We confirm both the citizenship and the profession match at the consultation.
Only professions on the USMCA list qualify, and each has its own minimum credential, usually a particular degree or license. Engineers, scientists, accountants, economists, management consultants, university teachers, and many healthcare and technical roles are on it. The offered position and your qualifications both have to fit a listed profession precisely, which is where careful review pays off.
Canadian citizens can generally apply for TN status directly at a US port of entry without first getting a visa stamp, which makes the process fast. Mexican citizens generally apply for a TN visa at a US consulate first, then enter with it. Both routes require the same strong documentation; the Mexican route simply adds a consular step.
A TN is granted in periods of up to three years and can be renewed as long as the professional work continues and the stay remains genuinely temporary. There is no fixed lifetime cap on renewals. Renewal can be handled at a port of entry or, in appropriate cases, through an extension filed with USCIS.
For Canadians, the TN is usually a status granted at entry rather than a visa in the passport; for Mexicans, there is an actual TN visa issued by a consulate. Being admitted in TN status is what authorizes your work. The distinction affects travel, renewals, and changing employers, so it is worth understanding before you rely on it.
Yes. A spouse and unmarried children under 21 can generally accompany a TN worker in TD status. TD dependents can study in the US but are not authorized to work. We handle the dependent filings alongside the principal's case.
It can, but carefully. The TN is a nonimmigrant category that assumes you will return home, so openly pursuing permanent residency at the wrong time can jeopardize a TN entry or renewal. Many people do move from a TN to a green card, often by transitioning to a dual-intent category first. This is a decision to make with counsel before you act, and we map the timing so the two goals do not collide.
Yes, but a TN is tied to a specific employer and position, so a new employer generally means a new TN application: either a fresh admission at a port of entry or a petition to USCIS, depending on the situation. Working outside the terms of your current TN can create problems, so we handle employer changes deliberately rather than informally.
It depends on citizenship (Canadian port-of-entry cases and Mexican consular cases differ), whether an extension is filed with USCIS, and the government fees in effect. Because the TN can be relatively streamlined, the investment is often modest compared with other work visas. But a refused TN is costly, so preparation is where the value is. We give you a real number at the consultation, which carries a fee that is credited to your case if you retain us.
READY WHEN YOU ARE
Get the TN right the first time.
Schedule a consultation with one of our attorneys. We will confirm your profession match, build the employer letter, prepare you for the border or the consulate, and plan for a green card if that is where you are headed.