IN THIS GUIDE · An assignment ending earlier than the authorized period, and what the admission record does and does not permit
Start with the TN eligibility and application overview
Fix the actual last day of the professional activity
Obtain the employer’s written account of when employment ends. Distinguish the last working day, notice period, final payroll and severance arrangement. These dates can differ; do not decide the immigration end date from the final deposit alone. Give counsel the actual employment terms and any continuing duties so the status assessment uses the relevant facts.
Read the admission record as a ceiling, not a grant
Check the I-94 together with the employment end date. TN workers and their dependents may qualify for a grace period of up to 60 consecutive days or the remaining authorized validity period, whichever is shorter, once in each authorized validity period. DHS may shorten or eliminate it. It does not itself authorize work. Ask counsel how this rule applies before selecting a filing or departure date.
Trace the effect on dependents in TD status
Include every TD dependent in the status review: the job ending does not necessarily mean immediate loss of status because the grace-period provision also covers dependents. Review each I-94, age and any separate status. TD permits study but not employment; assess remote work and unpaid placements before starting them. A U.S.-citizen child does not need TD, although the family’s relocation still affects practical plans.
Decide among departure, a new filing, or a different status
The realistic options are usually departing before the situation deteriorates, having a new U.S. employer pursue a change or a fresh TN admission, or examining whether another category fits. Each carries different timing and different risk if the person remains while it is arranged. Approval of a filing, effective status, and lawful admission are separate things; ask counsel which the plan actually secures and when.
When two records disagree about the end date
Files routinely contain three plausible end dates: the one in the termination letter, the one on the final payroll statement, and the one the manager remembers. Ranked by weight, a signed employer letter stating the last day on which professional duties were actually performed generally settles the question, because it speaks to the activity the admission was granted for rather than to accounting. A payroll record settles when money moved, which is a different fact. Where the letter and the payroll record disagree, ask the employer to issue a short written correction naming both dates and explaining what each represents; that correction, not an email thread, is what belongs in the file. Hypothetical example: a severance arrangement for an accountant runs two pay periods past the last day of professional duties, and only the letter distinguishes them.
Where the weeks after an assignment ends usually go wrong
Three things go wrong here more often than anything else. The first is treating the printed I-94 date as permission and doing nothing until it approaches; any applicable grace provision is discretionary, bounded and may be shortened, so the calendar that matters began on the last day of duties. The second is beginning work for a new employer while a filing is merely prepared or merely receipted, which confuses a pending request with authorized activity. The third is silence: a dependent's separate question, such as a child approaching 21 or a spouse holding another status, goes unasked until departure is already booked. Each of these is a sequencing mistake rather than a legal ambiguity, and each is avoidable by putting the questions in writing early.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.