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.
Explain an internal role classification in ordinary professional terms
A Salisbury applicant may receive an offer whose title is meaningful inside the company but unclear outside it. The TN evidence should explain the actual work rather than substitute a convenient USMCA label.
TN requires Canadian or Mexican citizenship, prearranged activity in a listed USMCA profession and that profession’s qualifications. An internal analyst grade does not select the profession. Describe deliverables and responsibilities before assessing the relevant credential rule.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Identify the profession through duties
- Support the actual appointment
- Reconcile title changes
Check citizenship before relying on a senior US offer
A Salisbury resident’s seniority and Canadian permanent residence do not establish TN nationality eligibility. Start with the citizenship already held, then assess the role and qualifications under the relevant US category.
A TN principal must be a Canadian or Mexican citizen. Canadian permanent residence, education and an employer’s offer do not replace that requirement. A pending citizenship process is not a completed passport milestone.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Use the correct citizenship rule
- Assess other routes independently
- Separate household circumstances
Read management authority alongside nonvoting ownership
A Salisbury investor should not use the word owner as a substitute for an account of actual rights. Share classes, management contracts and removal powers can answer different parts of an E-2 assessment.
At least 50% of the enterprise must be owned by nationals of the relevant treaty country. Document the actual ownership rather than relying solely on the applicant’s passport or management title.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Establish the ownership nationality
- Explain development and direction
- Keep investment and enterprise conditions complete
Build the new office around effective authority rather than a promised promotion
A Salisbury company considering an acting manager for a US office needs a record of actual responsibilities and the capacity of the proposed operation. A title that may become permanent later cannot fill an evidentiary gap today.
Record the appointment, authority and actual work, including previous duties where relevant. L-1 requires the qualifying continuous foreign employment year within the relevant three-year period and a qualifying corporate relationship. Do not assume every year with the employer had the same capacity. For a new-office L-1A petition, the required foreign year must have been in a managerial or executive capacity.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Date the role accurately
- Support the appropriate new-office role
- Show continuing operations
Compare an acting company role with a contractual right to direct a business
A Salisbury applicant could be offered temporary authority within an employer group or a management agreement accompanying a personal investment. The labels may sound similar while the underlying relationships differ.
L-1 depends on the qualifying group relationship, foreign employment and actual managerial/executive or specialized-knowledge role. An acting title requires a substantive account of authority and duties, not automatic acceptance or rejection.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Review the company-transfer basis
- Review the investor basis
- Identify effective rights and changes
Plan household finances without assuming future immigration or investment outcomes
A Salisbury household may rely on an employer’s proposed promotion, a project repayment forecast or property proceeds. These can affect practical plans without determining status, work permission or derivative eligibility.
TD does not authorize employment. Qualifying E and L spouses may work incident to appropriate status with required evidence; dependent children do not gain the spouse permission. An expected income gap or unpaid role does not automatically create authorization.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Check actual work permission
- Keep family eligibility distinct from funding
- Coordinate immigrant entry and costs
Test the household plan against an uncertain investment exit
If a Salisbury applicant expects an EB-5 repayment to fund another major commitment, the proposed exit deserves its own review. Compare that exposure with Gold Card on the basis that a government gift is not capital expected to return, rather than assuming either route can supply a guaranteed financial outcome.
Read the offering and governing documents for what determines timing and entitlement, distinguishing a forecast from an enforceable obligation. Ask who makes the decision and what assumptions support the projected exit. EB-5 funds must qualify as at-risk capital with documented lawful source and path. Required management or policy-formulation participation may be supported by qualifying limited-partner rights; the investor need not simply assume a passive label settles the rule. At least ten qualifying full-time jobs per investor also remain necessary. Neither a projected repayment nor a well-capitalized sponsor replaces these requirements. In particular, the statute excludes capital carrying an investor’s contractual repayment right or a guaranteed rate of return. Distinguish such a right from a buyback left solely to the enterprise’s discretion, which has its own statutory exception and applicable sustainment and other conditions; a forecast should not be rewritten as an investor guarantee.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Locate the terms that govern a possible distribution
- Compare the financial commitments without netting off hoped-for returns
- Keep cash planning separate from residence milestones