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.
Warman TN guide: keep the old contract and new offer on an accurate timeline
A professional transition can involve uncertainty about when existing work ends. Explain actual commitments and the new assignment without using the desired start date as an eligibility argument. The first review should produce a dated document list rather than a narrative built around a hoped-for departure. Compare the signed offer, duties, salary terms, credentials and current commitments. The decision is whether the evidence supports one temporary professional arrangement without hiding a conflict between an old engagement and the new work.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the current state of each engagement
- Assess the new professional work independently
- Separate availability and authorization
Warman guide: distinguish a new job from a change in citizenship
A new offer can change the proposed activity without changing nationality. Record actual citizenship and Canadian residence separately before selecting a U.S. category. Start with the passport or other citizenship proof, immigration record and the exact U.S. proposal. That review distinguishes residence in Canada from nationality and avoids making an employment choice before a category can be tested. The decision is whether citizenship is presently established or whether another route must be evaluated on its own facts.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the person’s existing nationality
- Assess other routes on their own evidence
- Keep each relative’s process individual
Warman E-2 guide: connect borrowed funds to the actual business commitment
A loan can explain where money came from while leaving questions about collateral, transfer and investment unresolved. Trace the complete arrangement instead of treating the approved borrowing limit as invested capital. A first review turns the proposed investment into a ledger with source document, bank movement, recipient and legal obligation for every material amount. It also isolates collateral and ownership questions. The decision is whether the money is genuinely committed to a real enterprise and exposed to commercial loss, rather than merely available under a financing approval.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Read the actual security and obligations
- Show source, path and commitment
- Keep the enterprise and role tests complete
Warman L-1 guide: check the special foreign-role rule before opening a new office
A qualifying foreign specialist may be considered for a different U.S. capacity under the general L rule. A new-office L-1A proposal has a specific foreign managerial or executive requirement that must be assessed separately. A new-office review should produce an entity map, a foreign-employment timeline, premises evidence and a first-year operating plan. These records answer separate questions about the organization, employee and launch. The decision is whether the business can support the selected role after the initial year, not simply whether it can register an entity and rent an address.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the U.S. operation’s actual stage
- Apply the specific L-1A launch requirements
- Keep L-1B and group evidence distinct
Warman L-1 or E-2 guide: assess a change in capacity before assuming an investment is necessary
An employee proposed for a different U.S. role may need the L requirements assessed on the genuine history. Do not assume a title change automatically requires an investor route or that investment repairs a missing employment condition. Begin with two separate fact maps. The L map identifies related organizations, the foreign employment record and the actual U.S. duties; the E-2 map identifies nationality, ownership, source of funds and business commitments. The decision is whether an existing company relationship supports a transfer analysis or whether an independently owned operating investment has its own evidentiary foundation.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Compare the actual foreign and U.S. capacities
- Assess a real investment proposal independently
- Name the actual evidence gap
Warman family guide: distinguish the principal’s role transition from dependent permission
A move from one internal role to another can change the principal’s proposed case without automatically deciding each relative’s status. Keep the household’s activities and records individual. A family review should create a separate line for every traveller: relationship, passport, intended status, planned arrival, work or study and expiration record. It prevents the principal's proposed change from becoming a shortcut for everyone else. The decision is whether each person has a status and activity that match the actual family plan.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the actual dependent category
- Track dates and intended activities separately
- Keep investor family roles distinct
- Respect the order of immigrant entry
Warman investor guide: identify who is a principal before comparing household totals
Two investors and one accompanying relative do not necessarily have the same capital or payment obligations. Name the actual case roles before treating a shared budget as a legal conclusion. A company deciding between sponsoring an employee and the owner investing personally should first decide what happens if that employee leaves, because the corporate gift carries maintenance and transfer conditions rather than a refund, and the owner's EB-5 case does not depend on any one employee staying.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- For EB-5, distinguish principals and derivatives
- For Gold Card, identify the actual route and family
- Do not infer a case result from pooled money
- Distinguish capital, official gifts and residence stages
- Plan for the employee leaving after the gift is paid