USCIS Increases Period Of Stay For NAFTA Professionals From Canada And Mexico

On October 14, 2008, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

(USCIS) announced the publication of its new rule increasing the

maximum period of time a Trade-NAFTA (TN) professional from Canada

or Mexico may remain in the United States before seeking

readmission or obtaining an extension of stay. The rule extends

both the initial period of admission and subsequent extensions of

stay for qualified TN workers, and their spouses and children, from

one to three years.

The rule change, which brings the TN visa category time limits

in line with the admission time framework for other nonimmigrant

worker categories, such as H-1B professional workers, should ease

the administrative burden on employers with covered TN employees

(as well as those workers' families) and enable employers to

maintain a more stable and predictable workforce.

The TN nonimmigrant classification allows qualified Canadian and

Mexican citizens to seek temporary entry into the United States to

engage in business activities at a professional level. The

classification was created pursuant to the 1993 North American Free

Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The TN nonimmigrant classification is

available to eligible Mexicans and Canadians who:

Hold at least a bachelor's degree or other appropriate

professional credentials; and

Work in qualified fields, as defined in NAFTA, including, but

not limited to, accountants, engineers, attorneys, pharmacists,

scientists, computer systems analysts and teachers.

Spouses and children of TN workers may be granted nonimmigrant

status as a NAFTA dependent (TD) and may be admitted to the U.S.,

but may not work.

The USCIS does not impose an annual limit on the number of TN

admissions and an individual may repeatedly enter the U.S. in TN

status. Statistics maintained by the Department of Homeland

Security indicate that, including readmissions, there were more

than 74,000 TN admissions for Fiscal Year 2006, the last year for

which data is available.

TN admissions requirements differ for Canadian and Mexican

citizens. Canadians are not required to apply for a visa with a

U.S. consulate or file a petition with USCIS. Rather, when

requesting admission as a TN worker at a U.S. port-of entry,

Canadian citizens must provide proof of citizenship and a letter

from their prospective employer describing their professional

capacity, purpose, length of stay, and educational qualifications.

The applicant may also need to provide credentials evaluations.

Once approved for...