Last Updated on December 5, 2022 by Anda Malescu
This article discusses the top TN visa requirements.
The TN visa is a nonimmigrant visa available to professionals who are Canadian or Mexican citizens under the United States – Mexico – Canada Agreement (USMCA) which substituted the NAFTA agreement.
The TN visa allows qualified citizens of Canada and Mexico to temporary live and work in the United States and conduct business activities at a professional level for US and foreign employers.
Prior to obtaining the TN visa and engaging in professional activities in the US, the Canadian or Mexican applicant must have a prearranged employment.
The primary TN visa applicant can bring their spouse and children under the age of 21 to live with them in the United States. However, the spouse and children of a TN visa holder cannot work during their stay in the US but can attend public and private schools, universities, and other educational institutions.
The TN nonimmigrant visa is a distinct and separate visa and should not be confused with the H1-B visa.
The top requirements to qualify for a TN visa are:
1. The primary applicant must be a citizen of Canada or Mexico.
In order to qualify for a TN visa, the applicant seeking this classification must be a citizen of Canada or Mexico. Only those individuals who hold a Canadian or Mexican passport can successfully apply for a TN visa. Permanent residents of Canada or Mexico do not qualify for a TN visa.
2. The applicant must be a member of one of the NAFTA professions.
The applicant must be a member of at least one of the listed NAFTA professions and there are approximately 60 professions that qualify for a TN visa. You can find a complete list of professions here.
Each NAFTA profession has minimum requirements for education and/or experience that the applicant must meet in order to be able to obtain the TN visa.
Most professions under the NAFTA regulations require a bachelor’s degree. If a bachelor’s degree is required, then experience cannot be substituted for the degree unless the requirements specifically state that experience is accepted in lieu of a bachelor’s degree.
With some professions, the applicant can use experience as an alternative to a bachelor’s degree and in other professions, experience is required in addition to the bachelor’s degree.
The following professions qualify for TN visa:
General Professions
- Accountant – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or C.P.A., C.A., C.G.A., or C.M.A.
- Architect – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Computer Systems Analyst – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate and 3 years’ experience
- Disaster Relief Insurance Claims Adjuster – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims; or 3 years’ experience in claims adjustment and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims
- Economist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Engineer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Forester – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Graphic Designer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate and 3 years’ experience
- Hotel Manager – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree in hotel/restaurant management; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate in hotel/restaurant management and 3 years’ experience in hotel/restaurant management
- Industrial Designer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate, and 3 years’ experience
- Interior Designer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate, and 3 years’ experience
- Land Surveyor – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree or state/provincial/federal license
- Landscape Architect – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Lawyer (including Notary in the province of Quebec) – L.L.B., J.D., L.L.L., B.C.L., or Licenciatura degree (5 years); or membership in a state/provincial bar
- Librarian – M.L.S., or B.L.S. (for which another Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree was a prerequisite)
- Management Consultant – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or equivalent professional experience as established by statement or professional credential attesting to 5 years’ experience as a management consultant, or 5 years’ experience in a field of specialty related to the consulting agreement
- Mathematician (including Statistician) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Range Manager/ Range Conservationist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Research Assistant (working in a post-secondary educational institution) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura 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 or Licenciatura Degree
- Sylviculturist (including Forestry Specialist) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Technical Publications Writer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree, or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate, and 3 years’ experience
- Urban Planner (including Geographer)—Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Vocational Counselor – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Medical and Allied Professions
- Dentist – D.D.S., D.M.D., Doctor en Odontologia or Doctor en Cirugia Dental or state/provincial license
- Dietitian – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Medical Laboratory Technologist (Canada)/Medical Technologist (Mexico and the United States) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate, and 3 years’ experience
- Nutritionist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Occupational Therapist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Pharmacist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Physician (teaching or research only)—M.D. Doctor en Medicina; or state/provincial license
- Physiotherapist/ Physical Therapist–Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
- Psychologist – state/provincial license; or Licenciatura Degree
- Recreational Therapist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Registered Nurse – state/provincial license or Licenciatura Degree
- Veterinarian – D.V.M., D.M.V., or Doctor en Veterinaria; or state/provincial license
Scientist Professions
- Agriculturist (including Agronomist)—Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Animal Breeder/Scientist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Apiculturist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Astronomer – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Biochemist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Biologist (including Plant Pathologist) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Chemist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Dairy Scientist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Entomologist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Epidemiologist— Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Geneticist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Geochemist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Geologist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Geophysicist (including Oceanographer in Mexico and the United States) – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Horticulturist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Meteorologist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Pharmacologist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Physicist (including Oceanographer in Canada – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Plant Breeder – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Poultry Scientist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Soil Scientist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Zoologist – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Teacher Professions
- College Professor – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- Seminary Professor – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
- University Professor – Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
3. Proof that the position in the United States required a NAFTA professional.
The applicant must provide a job offer letter from a prospective employer. The employment letter should detail the position, duties, educational qualifications, duration, purpose of employment and salary among others.
4. The applicant meets the educational requirements and experience for the profession.
The applicant must have the education and/or experience required by the profession and the job position. The applicant must be able to perform the duties for the specific NAFTA profession for which the applicant seeks TN visa classification and not perform duties that are primarily related to another profession that is not listed as an approved profession under the NAFTA regulations.
For the educational requirements, the regulations for TN status do not provide guidance on what types of bachelor’s degrees or majors are suitable for a particular NAFTA profession. However, the degree should be in a field or in a closely related field to that particular profession.
To satisfy the bachelor’s degree requirement, the TN applicant can show a degree obtained from a college or university in one of the NAFTA countries or outside the NAFTA countries (outside Mexico, US or Canada). If the applicant has obtained the degree outside the NAFTA countries, then he or she must obtain an academic evaluation by a credential evaluation company.
With respect to those professions that require post-secondary diplomas and/or certificates, the degrees must be obtained from an institution in one of the NAFTA countries.
In order to determine TB visa eligibility, the immigration officer focuses on the duties required by the approved profession in accordance with the Bureau of Labor Statistics and not on the exact job title used.
In addition, for those TN visa professions that require a license to practice, the license does not need to be from the United States but must be a license from Mexico or Canada as required to practice the profession in Mexico or Canada.
5. The applicant has a prearranged full-time or part-time position with a US employer. The applicant cannot obtain a TN visa through self-employment.
The applicant must have a prearranged position prior to applying for the TN Visa.
An employment agency cannot hire or sponsor a TN professional if the agency does not have a job placement for the applicant.
Part-time employment is acceptable to qualify for TN visa category, but self-employment where the applicant seeks to obtain the TN visa to start a business or practice in the United States is not possible.
Internships or fellowships are available for the TN visa category as long as the duties to be performed by the applicant are undertaken at a professional level.
Malescu Law can assist
Our TN visa lawyers in Miami, Florida USA can discuss and advise on the top TN visa requirements, strategize your immigration case, collect the necessary documents, plan and prepare your Application, Support Letter and Employment Letters and assist with the other steps in obtaining the TN visa. Contact us now or book a consultation!
Malescu Law P.A. – Business & Immigration Lawyers
