Forms required for a TN Visa Application

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Depending on how you apply for a TN visa, there may technically be no government forms required if you are a Canadian citizen! If you are a Mexican citizen, there will always be forms required regardless of how you apply.

What forms are needed for your TN visa application?

Let’s start with discussing the process and forms for a TN visa for a Canadian citizen. There are 4 different ways a Canadian citizen you can apply for a TN visa, as follows:

  • Land border
  • Preflight clearance at an airport in Canada
  • Customs in US at an airport
  • Through a USCIS Service Center

If a Canadian citizen is applying for the TN visa status at a land border, preflight clearance in Canada or airport in the US (see Find Out Where a Canadian Citizen Can Apply for a TN Visa for more info on this), no government forms are required for the application, unless the application was prepared by an attorney, in which case the application package will contain the Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative.

The Form G-28 conveys that the application was prepared by an attorney and that the attorney represents the employer and/or the Canadian citizen applicant. Aside from the G-28, there are no other government forms required when applying via this method, but the application will need to contain other material pertaining to the request, such as the following:

  • Detailed employer letter of support
  • Copy of passport
  • Copy of degree(s) and transcript(s)
  • Resume
  • Relevant certifications and/or work experience letters, if necessary
  • Material pertaining to the employer connected to the TN application, such as corporate documents, financial documents, lease, website printouts, and/or any other items that might be helpful in establishing the operations of the business and need for the Canadian national’s employment
  • Other material that may be relevant to the Canadian national, the job being offered and/or the employer

If a Canadian is applying for a TN through the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (“USCIS”), then there will be government forms required, in addition to the Form G-28 if prepared by an attorney. At the present moment, all TN mail applications being submitted through the USCIS are sent to the Vermont Service Center.

The following forms are required for a mail application through a Service Center:

  • Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker
  • Form I-129, Free Trade, Supplement to Form I-129
  • Form G-28, Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative (if represented by an Attorney)
  • Form I-907, Request for Premium Process Service (if premium processing is requested)
    • *Unlike an H-1B visa or E-3 visa application, a Labor Condition Application is not a part of a TN visa application

As mentioned at the beginning of this post, Mexican citizens always require forms in connection with their TN application regardless of how they apply.

The reason for this is due to the fact that a Mexican citizen, unlike a Canadian citizen, cannot apply for a TN directly at a port of entry (land border, preflight clearance or US airport); they can only apply for a TN directly at a US consulate or through the USCIS.

If applying through the USCIS, the same forms mentioned above for Canadian citizens are required for Mexican citizens.

If applying through a US Consulate, a Mexican citizen’s application will be very similar to a Canadian citizen’s port of entry application, except that a Mexican citizen must complete a Form DS-160, Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application.