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I just picked up on this tread. I'm a Canadian from Toronto, currently
residing in San Diego working as a Technical Writer on a TN visa (and paying
US taxes).
There are a couple of good web-sites with Visa information. Though many
serious full-time employers will guide you through the visa process, here
are a couple of very good sites if you want to seek information
independently:
For information about professions covered under NAFTA / TN visas, see http://www.grasmick.com/nafta.htm and choose the Requirements link.
There are also other types of visas that may apply (depending on your
situation).
Kathrene
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayton Cornell [mailto:clayton -dot- cornell -at- asml -dot- nl]
Sent: Wednesday, November 01, 2000 1:55 AM
To: TECHWR-L
Subject: Re: TN Visa requirements
> That depends on where you are doing your work. If you are doing all
> your work in Canada, and only going to the United States to consult
> with your client, then you can cross without difficulty. All that
> American customs really wants is the assurance that you are not
> actually working in the United States.
True enough, but it comes down to the INS officer's interpretation of
the law and how cranky they are that day. In a former life I was a
Canadian working as a Tech writer in Vancouver BC. I would regularly
travel to Santa Clara CA, Miami FL, or Raleigh NC to work on projects at
the US offices. Telling the US customs guys at the Vancouver airport
that you were traveling to the US to work one or two weeks at an
American branch office of a Canadian company was a big no-no even though
it was a regular thing for people to travel back and forth to work at
the various offices across Canada and the US.
Back to the topic of the TN1 Visa and working as a Tech Author in the US
though... get the list of job types that are considered in critical
shortage in the US - it should be available from your local US consulate
in the city you are living in. Find all the details of the TN1 Visa -
there are several Canadian government offices and websites (don't
remember them offhand though) that explain how the TN1 works. Put that
together into a neat package, (exercising your skills as a Tech Writer
of course) and hand that to your prospective employer when the subject
of eligibility to work in the US comes up.
Doing the background work and explaining to the employer that the TN1
Visa is easy to process based on a letter of employment from them etc.
can really help you.
That, or you could just move to Europe like I did ;-)
Later
Clayton
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