Information, Instructions and Links to Application Materials

What Is TN Status?

Who Is Eligible For TN Status?

A Note About Physicians

How Does A Prospective Or Current Employee Acquire TN Status?

How Long Is TN Status Valid?

Who Submits The Paperwork?

How Much Does It Cost?

How Can TN Status Be Extended?

Where Do We Start?
 

What Is TN Status?
The TN program is the immigration component of The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which was negotiated for the purpose of facilitating the flow of goods and services between Canada, Mexico and the US. Individual workers in certain occupations are included in this agreement, which allows professionals to practice their disciplines in the other two countries.

The TN classification is essentially a modified version of the H-1 program that does away with (for Canadians) the complicated preliminaries of the H-1 for employees in occupations that were included in the Treaty. Employers seeking TN status for Mexican employees must still complete all the preliminary paperwork as for H status.

The NAFTA is not comprehensive of all the occupation s that can be engaged in under H status. It is recommended that departments considering TN status for an employee check the Schedule of Occupations to determine whether the occupation is listed in the Treaty. If the Schedule lists the occupation and the applicant is Canadian, proceed with these links. If the applicant is Mexican, jump to the H-1 links and proceed from there, making sure to indicate "TN" rather than "H-1" where necessary.

Unlike H-1 or O-1 status, however, TN status is not "dual intent," and to be admitted as a TN employee, the applicant must be able to establish that s/he plans to return to the home country at some point in the future. While this obligation is somewhat at odds with the aspect of the Treaty that allows TN employees an indefinite number of extensions, USCIS inspectors can be adamant about the "temporary" nature of TN employment. TN status is not compatible with tenure-track faculty appointments or plans to immigrate to the US (i.e., become a "permanent resident" and hold a "green card.") (top)
 
 

Who Is Eligible For TN Status?
Any Stanford employee who is a Canadian or Mexican citizen, is currently or will prospectively be on the payroll, and who practices a discipline on the Schedule of Occupations may use the TN program. Stanford requires that TN workers, like H-1 and O-1 employees, be on payroll, meaning that no external/fellowship funding or stipends may be used to support TN postdocs. Otherwise, TN status is free of the limitations inherent to the H-1 classification, not the least of which is the annual cap. (top)
 
 

A Note About Physicians
The Schedule includes "Physician" among the professions that may be admitted under the terms of the Agreement. However, they are limited to teaching and/or research. While teaching responsibilities often include some patient contact, and to the extent that such activities may be considered billable, this is not likely to be understood by the USCIS inspector in the context of "teaching and/or research." Further, some insurance plans may not reimburse for procedures carried out by physicians in TN status. H-1 or O-1 status is indicated for physician-faculty/researchers who plan to engage in patient contact activities of any kind.

Please note that medical residents are employees of the hospital, and Bechtel does not file petitions of any type on their behalf. Contact the Office of Graduate Medical Education. (top)
 
 

How Does A Prospective Or Current Employee Acquire TN Status?
TN status is usually acquired by Canadians at a Port of Entry at the border or Pre-Flight Inspection counters at Canadian airports. It is also possible to change to TN status, extend one's stay or add employers by filing a petition with the Nebraska Service Center of the INS. Petitions are not needed for TN applications at airport Pre-Flight Inspection Counters and Ports of Entry along the US-Canada border.

Routine re-entries during the validity of a TN approval are made with the "multiple entry" I-94 card issued by an Immigration Inspector or the Notice of Action generated by the Lincoln, Nebraska USCIS Service Center.

The USCIS has stated that extensions will not be accepted at airport Pre-Flight Inspection Counters and Ports of Entry at the border, but rather that an employer's petition should be filed with the Lincoln Service Center. USCIS Inspectors appear not to be consistent about refusing to extend TN status at border facilities, however. If an "extension" is processed at the border, it is treated as a new application. (top)
 
 

How Long Is TN Status Valid?
TN authorization is valid for a maximum of one year, but can be extended indefinitely as long as the applicant maintains nonimmigrant intent. (top)
 
 

Who Submits The Paperwork?
Prospective TN workers who are planning to make an initial entry or carry out a TN transaction with USCIS at the border can obtain what they need from their host department directly. The department provides a TN employment letter to the applicant, for use along with additional documentation the applicant is responsible for compiling him or herself. No petition or other correspondence is sent from Stanford to the INS.

(Extensions and other submissions to the USCIS are a slightly more complicated matter, and are coordinated by the I-Center. Departments and applicants provide the letter and immigration documentation to Bechtel, where the petition is compiled. When Bechtel notifies the department that the petition is ready, it is collected, the PI or chair signs in the indicated places, the fee is attached and the petition is sent from the department to the USCIS Service Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. For information about applications submitted by mail, go back to the top of the page and click on "Where do we start?") (top)
 
 

How Much Does It Cost?
Prospective TN workers who cross the border pay $50, plus $6 for the I-94 card. Dependents pay only for the card(s). Extensions submitted to the USCIS Service Center in Lincoln, Nebraska cost $185 for TN principals, and $120 for any number of dependents. Checks may be personal or institutional, written by the applicant or department, payable to "Immigration and Naturalization Service." (top)
 
 

How Can TN Status Be Extended?
TN status is usually extended by means of a petition filed with the USCIS Service Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. It appears in practice to be possible for Canadian workers to extend TN authorizations by reentering the US from Canada with a new letter, but it is the prerogative of the Inspector to decline to do this. (top)
 
 

Where Do We Start?
This depends on where the TN worker is, and how he or she prefers to use the TN program to become or continue to be work-authorized at Stanford. Remember, this information applies only to Canadians. Mexicans who wish to use the TN program are processed exactly like H-1s.

For instructions on how to facilitate the acquisition of TN status at the US/Canada border, or for additional links to information about filing TN applications with the Nebraska Service Center, click here. (top)