American Immigration Lawyers
Khan Law, PLLC
555 Republic Drive, Floor 2, Suite 214
Plano, TX 75074
Office: (469) 200-6508
WhatsApp: (469) 200-6508
Email: info@khanlegalgroup.com
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The Visa Guide · Work
TN Professionals
Canada & Mexico
Built for neighbors.
Under the USMCA, Canadian and Mexican citizens can work in the U.S. in designated professions with no annual cap and no lottery. For Canadians, same-day processing at the border.
Who Qualifies
On the list. In the door.
Four things decide a TN: the passport, the profession, the credentials, and your intent.
Canadian or Mexican citizenship
The TN exists for citizens of Canada and Mexico under the USMCA.
A listed profession
A job offer in a profession on the USMCA list: engineers, accountants, computer systems analysts, scientists, management consultants, and roughly 60 more.
The right credentials
The credentials the list requires for that profession: usually a bachelor’s, with some professions accepting licenses or experience combinations.
Nonimmigrant intent
TN is not dual intent, so green card plans need sequencing.
The Process
Five steps. One profession.
The match
Match the job title and duties precisely to a listed profession. Mismatch is the #1 cause of refusals.
Canadians: the border
Apply at a port of entry or preclearance airport with the offer letter, credentials, and proof of citizenship, decided on the spot. The employer may file Form I-129 instead.
Mexicans: the consulate
Apply at a U.S. consulate with Form DS-160 for the TN visa, then enter.
The renewals
Admission up to 3 years per grant, renewable indefinitely by border or consular reapplication, or an I-129 extension.
The family and the future
Spouses and children accompany in TD status (no work authorization). A move to H-1B or a carefully timed PERM handles permanent plans.
Forms & Fees
Know the paperwork.
The employer-filed USCIS route for TN grants and extensions
The consular TN visa application for Mexican citizens
The status for accompanying spouses and children, without work authorization
The #1 cause of refusals
A job title and duties that don’t precisely match a listed profession. Get the match right the first time, before anyone drives to the border.
Live processing times & fees
Government numbers change monthly. These official tools are always current:
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Every case is different. Tell us your story. The evaluation is free, and we’ll tell you exactly which path fits.
Attorney Advertising: general information, not legal advice. Get the profession match right the first time: request a free case evaluation or call (469) 200-6508. ← Back to all visa guides
The Rules
What you can and cannot do.
- Hold TN status for more than one U.S. employer, with a separate authorization for each
- Work full time or part time in the listed profession
- Send TD spouses and children to school full time, no student visa needed
- Get a new TN when the job changes, at any time, without waiting for the current one to expire
- Be self-employed in the U.S. or work through your own company
- Start with a new employer before the new TN is approved
- Treat the offer letter as status: your I-94 date controls, even if the job runs longer
- Cross the border casually with a green card case pending: every entry retests nonimmigrant intent
Costs
What it costs in 2026.
Three doors, three price tags. Canadians pay at the border, where the I-94 fee jumped from $6 to $30 on September 30, 2025. Mexicans pay the standard consular fee, plus the $250 integrity fee created by the 2025 budget law when the visa is issued. Either way, the employer can instead choose the USCIS petition route, which costs the most and is the only one with a paid rush lane.
| Item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian application at the border | $80 per person | A $50 TN application fee plus the $30 I-94 fee, decided the same day at the port of entry |
| Mexican TN visa (DS-160) | $185 per person | The standard consular rate; the TN needs no petition behind it |
| Visa integrity fee | $250 per person | At issuance for Mexican applicants; Canadians receive no visa, so it does not apply |
| Employer petition (Form I-129) | $1,015 | The USCIS route; $510 for small employers and nonprofits; every I-129 adds the $600 Asylum Program Fee ($300 small employers, $0 nonprofits) |
| Premium processing (Form I-907) | $2,965 | Optional 15-business-day USCIS decision on the I-129 |
| TD family in the U.S. (Form I-539) | $420 online / $470 paper | Extends or changes TD status; one filing can include a spouse and children |
Fee amounts reflect published government figures as of August 2026 and change over time; the live links above are always current. Border and consular fees apply per person, including children.
FAQ
Questions we hear every week.
Do I need an appointment to apply at the border?
Most land ports take TN applications on a walk-in basis, and Canadian preclearance airports handle them before boarding, but hours and habits vary by port. We prepare clients for the specific crossing, because the officer you meet at a quiet land port is not the officer you meet at a major airport.
I was refused at the border. Is that permanent?
No. A TN refusal goes in the record but it is not a bar, and most refusals trace to a fixable file: a vague offer letter, a mismatched title, missing transcripts. Fix the defect before trying again, and do not shop the same weak file to another port, because officers can see the history.
Can I work for a consulting or staffing company at client sites?
Yes, with a carefully built file. Third-party placements draw extra questions about who controls the work and whether the duties at the client stay inside the listed profession, so the offer letter and the client documentation have to line up. Management consultant cases in particular need honest, precise scoping.
Is a three-year Canadian degree enough?
Usually, yes: a Canadian bachelor’s degree is a bachelor’s degree for TN purposes. The harder questions come with degrees from other countries or with diplomas, where a credential evaluation bridges the gap, and with the handful of professions that carry their own licensing rules.
What can my TD spouse actually do?
Study full time without a student visa, live here, travel, and raise the family. What a TD spouse cannot do is work for a U.S. employer, including remote gig work. If working matters, we look at their own TN eligibility or a different category entirely.
Why would anyone use the USCIS route instead of the border?
Three reasons: extending without leaving the U.S., avoiding a difficult port when the file is complicated, and getting a decision on paper before anyone travels. It costs more and moves slower unless the employer pays for premium processing, but for some cases that certainty is worth every dollar.