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.
Prepare TN evidence the same way whether the employer is next door or across the region
For a Woolwich resident sent abroad by a Canadian employer, the TN file must explain the actual prearranged U.S. professional assignment. Identify the U.S. recipient, work location, duties, remuneration and temporary period, then connect the listed profession to Canadian or Mexican citizenship and the prescribed qualification. A job performed only within Waterloo Region does not create a TN case.
Regardless of the employer's location within the region, ask for a description of a representative week's work rather than relying on a verbal summary passed along informally. Keep the written description as the working reference.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Get the duty description directly from the employer
- Keep credential and employer facts on separate tracks
- Resolve any inconsistency before signature
A rural or township address does not change the citizenship-versus-residence distinction
A Canadian permanent resident card establishes Canadian legal status, not citizenship, regardless of whether the household lives in a township or one of the region's cities. Confirm actual passports and status for each family member before assuming any particular U.S. route applies.
Hypothetical example: a family living in Woolwich includes one Canadian citizen and one permanent resident whose citizenship application is pending. Record the pending application as pending, since TN specifically requires actual Canadian or Mexican citizenship.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Record actual status, not expected status
- Assess each opportunity, including a family business role, on its own terms
- Keep Canadian-side obligations visible
Document family or informal investment terms as rigorously as any arm's-length deal
When part of a proposed E-2 investment comes from family financing or a locally known business, map the actual terms and conditions with the same rigor as an arm's-length transaction. A trusted relationship between the parties does not reduce the documentation needed to trace funds and confirm control.
Hypothetical example: a relative agrees informally to lend part of the investment amount. Document the loan terms, amount, and lawful source of those funds in writing before treating it as part of the qualifying investment.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Put informal understandings in writing
- Confirm collateral and repayment terms regardless of the lender
- Describe the enterprise's real operations, not its local reputation
A new U.S. office proposal from a smaller regional company still needs first-year evidence
A new-office L-1A petition from a smaller or family-owned company based in the Waterloo Region needs the same evidence of secured premises and a credible operating plan as a larger company would provide. Local business reputation does not substitute for documented U.S.-side planning and, later, actual results.
Identify the specific premises, financial resources, and staffing sequence planned for the new U.S. office, regardless of the parent company's size. New-office treatment concerns a U.S. organization doing business for less than one year. Establish the continuous full-time qualifying foreign year within the relevant preceding three years; for new-office L-1A that year must be managerial or executive.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Describe the resources actually committed to the launch
- Record changes honestly as the plan develops
- Prepare the extension from real first-year results
Compare a company transfer and a family business investment as two distinct proposals
Where a family is weighing an employee's company transfer against investing in a separate U.S. business, assess each proposal against its own actual requirements rather than combining favourable facts from both into a single impression.
Hypothetical example: one family member could transfer within an existing employer's corporate structure while another considers investing in an unrelated U.S. business. Show the ownership and relationships for each option independently.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Diagram each proposal's entities separately
- Describe the actual proposed work under each option
- Compare the household consequences of each path
A shared family address does not create a single shared immigration case
Even within a close-knit family living together in Woolwich Township, each person's citizenship, planned activity, and age need individual review before assuming that one person's approved status or route extends to everyone else in the household.
Hypothetical example: one adult child accepts a U.S. job offer while a sibling continues managing the family's local business from Canada. Record each person's actual plan rather than treating the household as a single unit.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Separate personal employment from a shared family business
- Address each dependent's study and work questions individually
- Plan for a change affecting only one family member
Compare EB-5 and the Gold Card gift framework using the family business's real numbers
A family weighing a qualifying EB-5 investment in a U.S. enterprise tied to its business against the Gold Card gift-based framework should compare the two using the family's actual funding sources, family size, and risk tolerance, not a general impression that one is simply cheaper or faster than the other.
Hypothetical example: a family with three members to include compares an EB-5 project's minimum investment against the Gold Card's per-person gift and fee structure. Build out both totals explicitly, since the Gold Card framework charges separately per included family member. EB-5 currently requires US$1,050,000 or a qualifying US$800,000 TEA or infrastructure investment, with statutory adjustments starting January 1, 2027, and at least ten qualifying full-time jobs per investor. The investor must participate in management or policy formulation; eligible limited-partner rights can suffice.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS
- Model each route's real total cost for this specific family
- Compare job evidence with the gift and eligibility conditions
- Get independent advice before choosing either route