Read the general eligibility basics overview
An approval obtained through a former employer described that employer, that role and those dates. A new position is a new set of facts. Before planning a start date, assemble what the earlier approval actually was, what it permitted and whether it remains in effect, and keep that record separate from your citizenship and your Canadian status, which are different questions again.
Write down the earlier approval precisely
Identify the category, the petitioning or sponsoring employer, the validity dates, the admission record, and whether the employment ended, was withdrawn or simply expired. Keep any I-94 record and approval notice together with the dates you were physically in the United States. These are facts about one past arrangement made on stated terms. A permission granted for that employment does not become a general permission to work merely because your nationality has not changed since.
Separate the steps that are genuinely distinct
A filing, an approval, a visa, an admission and effective work authorization are different events with different dates, and none of them stands in for another. Ask which of them would apply to the new position rather than assuming that something continues automatically, or that work may begin while a request is pending. Where the route depends on citizenship — Canadian or Mexican citizenship for TN, qualifying treaty nationality for E-2 — Canadian permanent residence alone does not supply it, so list every citizenship you hold and the travel documents for each.
Describe the new position on its own facts
Hypothetical example: a Pointe-Claire resident held an approval obtained through a previous employer, left that company, and now has an offer from an unrelated business in a different role. Gather the new offer, the duties as the new employer describes them, the corporate details, and any relationship between the two companies, since such a relationship can matter to some routes and be irrelevant to others. Bring the uncertainties as questions: periods spent outside the country, periods without status, and anything you cannot document. An accurate gap is easier to advise on than a tidy assumption.
What else is on your mind?
Does Canadian permanent residence give me access to TN?Is a matching job title enough for TN?Can years of experience replace a degree for TN?Can my own U.S. company employ me under TN?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.