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.
TN documents for a scientific technician or technologist role
Scientific technician/technologist is structured differently from most other TN categories: rather than a fixed degree, it requires theoretical knowledge of one of the specified scientific disciplines plus the ability to solve practical problems in that discipline, and work performed in direct support of a professional in one of those fields, such as a scientist or engineer. The evidence needed reflects that unusual structure.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Document theoretical knowledge and practical ability together
- Show the supporting relationship to a qualifying professional
- Avoid overstating the credential
- Write the two halves of the showing as two separate exhibits
Planning around an expiring status while comparing permanent residence and citizenship
When an applicant's current status has a known expiry date, the comparison between permanent residence and citizenship becomes a timing question as much as an eligibility question. A route that depends on citizenship cannot be used on the strength of a pending naturalization application; only a completed and documented citizenship counts.
Before comparing routes, confirm exactly when the applicant's present status expires and what documentation proves that date. This is separate from any question about permanent residence or citizenship status in Canada, and it sets the outer limit on how much time is available to prepare a file. A route that would otherwise be suitable is not useful if the preparation timeline cannot realistically finish before the current status lapses.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Establish the current expiry date first
- Do not treat a pending citizenship application as citizenship
- Identify what would bridge the gap, if anything
- Work out what happens on the day after the current period ends
Planning around a current status that may expire before a new petition is ready
When someone's current authorized stay may run out before a new work visa petition is filed or decided, timing becomes its own question, separate from whether the new category is a good fit. Approval of a petition, issuance of a visa, and admission at the border are three distinct events, and none of them automatically extends a status that is expiring on its own schedule.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Map the actual expiration date against filing timeline
- Separate the current status question from the new category question
- Have a contingency if the new filing isn't ready in time
- Separate maintaining what you have from obtaining what you want
Sequencing an L1 new-office filing around an expiring status
When current status has a defined end date, the L1 new-office preparation timeline needs to work backward from that date, not forward from when the evidence happens to be ready. Identify what must be true on the last permissible day and build the file to meet it.
Confirm the exact date the current status expires, including any grace period that may apply, and treat that as the hard limit for any change or extension of status filed inside the US. Relying on a remembered or approximate date risks a filing gap. If the deadline is close, this is the point to decide whether to pursue a status change domestically or, if needed, plan for consular processing instead.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Map the real deadline, not an assumed one
- Prioritize evidence that takes the longest to produce
- Plan for the outcome even if the timeline slips
- Start with the item that has the longest lead time
Comparing L1 and E2 timing when current status is close to expiring
When current status is approaching its end, timing becomes as important as eligibility. L1 and E2 differ in how they are typically obtained and in what happens if a filing is not complete before status lapses. Neither category offers a guaranteed processing date, so a plan built only around eligibility, without a realistic timeline, can leave a gap between one status ending and another beginning.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Understand how each route is typically initiated
- Map the filing against the actual expiration date
- Plan for the gap, not just the filing
- Compare what each route needs from someone else
How to plan around a status that may expire before the next step is ready
When a current status is close to its end date and the next filing is not yet complete, the risk is not just missing a deadline for one person. Each family member's authorized period should be checked separately, because dependents and the principal applicant do not always expire on the same date or under the same rule.
A TN holder's admission period, a TD dependent's linked period, and any work authorization tied to an L2 or E2 spouse can each carry a different end date depending on how and when they were issued. Build a simple table of who expires when, and confirm it against the actual documents rather than assumption, since a dependent's period is not automatically identical to the principal's.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Map every expiration date in the household separately
- Know which option actually applies before the date arrives
- Build a contingency for a filing that runs late
- Put every household date on one page and keep it current
How to weigh EB-5 or a Gold Card contribution when current status may expire
Neither an EB-5 investment nor a Gold Card contribution changes the separate obligation to maintain lawful status while a case is pending. Both paths can take substantial time to resolve, and neither carries a guaranteed timeline. Someone whose current status may expire needs a plan for that gap that does not depend on either filing being decided quickly.
Filing an EB-5 petition or making a Gold Card contribution does not extend or protect an applicant's existing nonimmigrant status. If current status is approaching its end, that needs its own extension, change, or departure plan, built independently of how long the investment-based case might take. Do not treat a pending filing as a substitute for maintaining status.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Separate the status question from the investment or contribution question
- Account for each route's own processing exposure
- Plan dependents' status separately from the principal's
- Plan the interval as a period, not as a risk