Read it.
Use it.
Focused guides for the questions that need more than a quick answer. Each includes a worksheet to prepare your next conversation.
Guides for your next decision.
Build a TN employer evidence brief before drafting the letter
Read & prepare Applicant planningKeep an L-1A new-office record from approval to extension
Read & prepare Applicant planningCompare the E-2 evidence for a startup and a business purchase
Read & prepare U.S. destination planningCanadian RN planning for New York State
Read & prepare U.S. destination planningCanadian RN planning for California
Read & prepareSeven decisions, answered before you prepare.
Separate an academic credential from a professional membership certificate
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand applicant may have several documents showing education, membership and professional recognition. Identify what each actually establishes under the proposed TN profession rather than treating every certificate as the same qualification. Start by choosing the profession that the proposed duties actually fit, then build a document checklist from that profession’s published qualification options. The first review should produce a gap list: citizenship proof, employer letter, degree or licence, evaluation, and any document that explains a title or duties. Hypothetical example: a forensic entomologist has a graduate degree and a short-course certificate, but the offer describes laboratory management rather than the proposed professional work. The decision is whether the duties can be documented accurately under the selected profession before assembling the rest of the package.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Inventory the documents by their real purpose
- Apply the listed profession’s actual alternatives
- Connect the evidence to the actual offer
Do not use a Canadian professional licence as proof of citizenship
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand permanent resident may be authorized to practise a profession in Canada. That credential may matter to the professional assessment, but it does not itself establish the citizenship required for TN. The first review should make a two-column chart: immigration status and professional evidence. The status column identifies citizenship and travel-document facts; the professional column identifies education, licences and duties. That separation reveals whether TN is unavailable because of citizenship while another route may merit a separate review. Hypothetical example: a mycelium-packaging plant supervisor is a Canadian permanent resident with a recognized engineering credential but holds Colombian citizenship. The decision is whether the proposed role and the employer’s structure support another category, rather than mislabeling permanent residence as citizenship.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Keep citizenship and qualification on separate lines
- Assess other routes without borrowing the licence’s effect
- Explain what the credential can actually contribute
Adapt an existing business forecast to the actual U.S. enterprise
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand owner may use an established business’s results to plan a U.S. investment. Explain the assumptions behind the new enterprise rather than presenting the other operation’s revenue as the U.S. company’s own record. A first review should turn the proposal into a transaction map: who owns the U.S. entity, what is being bought or built, which funds have moved, and what makes them unavailable for personal use. It should also identify the record behind each forecast input. Hypothetical example: an industrial felt-recycling workshop has letters of interest from retailers but no signed supply agreements. The decision is whether the projected demand is sufficiently qualified in the plan or whether the purchase should wait for stronger operating evidence.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Separate historical evidence from the proposed forecast
- Assess the enterprise and the actual investment
- Retain ownership, authority and funding evidence
Explain the transferee’s decision authority when reporting lines span countries
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand group may retain senior oversight abroad while proposing a U.S. new-office manager. Describe the actual responsibilities and authority instead of assuming that a cross-border reporting line alone proves or defeats a managerial role. A first review should pair the one-year staffing plan with a day-one duty schedule. The plan needs to show who will perform the underlying work as the office develops, while the schedule identifies which decisions require the transferee’s managerial or executive role. Hypothetical example: a coastal sonar-equipment distributor secures a small office and forecasts three hires, but only one requisition has budget approval. The decision is whether the supported resources can develop the proposed role within the first year or whether the plan overstates its readiness.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Describe decisions and duties rather than titles alone
- Apply the specific new-office conditions
- Keep the organization and actual-progress evidence complete
Compare employment authority with investor control without assuming they are identical
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand manager may have broad employment responsibilities but no ownership of the proposed U.S. enterprise. Separate authority delegated as an employee from the actual ownership and control arrangement in an E-2 investor case. The first review should compare two evidence maps rather than two labels. The L map begins with the qualifying organizations, the foreign employment year and the proposed employee role; the E-2 map begins with treaty nationality, enterprise ownership, control and capital. Hypothetical example: a commercial greenhouse glazing firm wants its operations director to relocate while a relative will fund the U.S. company. The decision is whether the facts describe an employee transfer, an investor arrangement, or neither without changes to ownership and duties.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the L employee’s role and qualifying history
- Identify the E-2 investor’s actual legal arrangement
- Retain the additional conditions where they apply
Give siblings separate eligibility and status records
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand family may have children at different ages and stages of study. Record each child’s circumstances instead of applying one child’s eligibility assessment to every sibling. A first review should give every family member a separate row with relationship, age, marital status, nationality, passport expiry, current status and intended school or work activity. That record shows which questions are shared and which belong only to one person. Hypothetical example: a museum lighting designer’s 20-year-old child plans to marry before a proposed E-2 move, while a younger sibling plans to enroll in school. The decision is whether each person still has a qualifying derivative basis, rather than assuming the household moves under one rule.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Check the actual age and relationship conditions
- Keep work and school rules accurate
- Assess a child-age issue on its own facts
Distinguish a project update from the evidence supporting an investor’s immigration milestone
A Saint-Basile-le-Grand applicant may receive construction, financial or employment updates while an investor case proceeds. Identify what each update proves and which official decision remains outstanding. A first review should place EB-5 and Gold Card facts on separate checklists, then identify the official record that decides each next step. EB-5 concerns an at-risk capital investment and applicable job creation; Gold Card concerns successful official vetting, an instructed gift payment and the applicable permanent-residence determination. Hypothetical example: a meteorite-preparation laboratory receives a regional-center construction update and a private Gold Card marketing message on the same day. The decision is which official process, if any, the applicant is actually pursuing before money is committed.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Keep the EB-5 conditions tied to actual evidence
- Separate conditional residence from reports and petition receipts
- Preserve the official Gold Card requirements
- Classify the update before deciding what follows