Read the general professional work overview
Owning a foreign business should not automatically be treated as the prohibited U.S. arrangement. Identify the actual recipient, ownership and professional work before drawing a conclusion. A first review should identify the actual U.S. recipient, the applicant's control rights, the listed profession and the processing route before documents are assembled. The practical decision is whether the evidence describes a prearranged professional job for an employer or an impermissible plan to work for the applicant's own U.S. business.
Name the relevant entities and control
TN prohibits services to a U.S. entity solely owned or controlled by the applicant. A Canadian company’s ownership is not by itself the complete analysis. Hypothetical example: the applicant owns a Canadian business and has an offer from a separate U.S. enterprise. Explain the real relationship and control rights. Prepare a one-page entity map beside the source records. It should name the Canadian business, the U.S. recipient, owners, voting rights and the person who directs the assignment. Corporate formation papers, registers and governance documents settle control more reliably than a familiar business name.
Preserve the professional qualifications
Canadian or Mexican citizenship, a listed profession and its prescribed qualifications remain necessary. Experience is not a universal degree substitute. Degrees from institutions outside Canada, Mexico or the United States require reliable evaluation. A separate U.S. company does not automatically make unrelated duties professional TN work. Pair the job letter with the applicable professional qualification record. The letter should describe actual duties, anticipated length, compensation and the employer's need; the credential records then address the prescribed qualification. A degree or licence can be genuine yet still fail to establish that the offered work matches the listed profession.
Use the genuine agreement and process
Identify temporary terms, compensation and the actual work arrangement. Do not change corporate labels while concealing unchanged control. A consulting contract or invoice is not itself authorization to work; assess the actual process before relying on the assignment. For Canadian citizens, decide whether the admission request will be made at a border location or preclearance, or whether an employer will use Form I-129 with USCIS. Mexican citizens generally need a TN visa. Neither procedure permits self-directed work for a U.S. entity the applicant owns or controls, and Canadian permanent residence alone does not establish TN eligibility, which requires Canadian or Mexican citizenship. Hypothetical example: a Corman Park plant-DNA laboratory analyst has a U.S. offer from a seed-testing corporation while retaining shares in a Canadian consulting partnership. She must decide whether the packet proves employer-directed scientific duties or masks work for an entity she controls. The offer letter, laboratory reporting chart, share register and duty description answer that question before travel is booked.
What else is on your mind?
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?Can my spouse work if I hold TN status?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.