TN to Green Card
I'm about to accept an offer. I'm happy with all terms except that they have a policy that only those on dual-intent visas can apply for green cards and, because I would be on a TN, they won't allow it. I have friends at other tech companies who have successfully gone from TN to a green card and my current company has been willing to begin the process as well. I hear there are some risks but it's definitely possible. Wondering if anyone here has had this experience recently, going from a TN to green card, and can share. Background: I'm Canadian and have been on a J1, L1-B and TN three times.
they can not apply for a GC while on a TN. They first need to convert to H1. This is law, not company policy
this is bullshit. There are thousands people got GC from TN/OPT.
Second this. I was on a J visa which is single-intent, just like TN, and got my GC without going through H1.
Lol, both responses above are not entirely correct.. the law says you cannot enter on TN status with intention of staying. After you enter, you can change your mind. If you apply GC, you cannot leave and come back using your TN, that violates the Immigration Intent clause of the TN Visa.
Btw I went from TN to GC. You need to have Advance Parole after filing for 485 in order to leave the country and return, but the rumor is that AP is not guaranteed so it's recommended to not even leave with AP.. not until you actually receive your GC. The risk is that if your GC gets denied for whatever reason, you will be out of status and need to leave immediately and you can likely never apply for another visa again. Not even sure if you can reliably enter US with B1 visa. I know Canadians are exempt from applying for B1 but I think they might just flag you for any future B1 visits because B1 is also non-immigration intent. It's also apparently safer to file i-140 separately from i-485 instead of concurrently because i-485 approval requires an approved i-140. If you file concurrently and your i-140 for whatever reason is not approved (maybe they don't believe you qualify for the EB category) then your 485 that you've already sent out would be in danger of getting denied. Supposedly your 485 would be tougher too because they need to determine if you really did enter on TN previously with no intention of immigration.
Just to add to this: you cannot file I-485 for 90 days after the last entry on a non-immigrant status like TN, B, F etc. They’ll automatically reject the 485 if you do apply within 90 days. This is the only risk involved. So it is best not to travel outside the US during this 90 days plus however long it takes to get the AP card. I myself did the TN2GC and traveled multiple times to Canada on EAD/AP combo card. Also make sure after you enter the first time on AP, you let your HR know that you’re no longer on TN and are working on EAD. And also make sure you apply in advance for EAD/AP extensions so there won’t be any gaps in your employment. You’ll be basically working on EAD and traveling on AP while 485 is pending.
People above are wrong. Though the TN visa is not dual intent you can apply it's just risky. Basically you won't be able to leave the country in the time that you are waiting for your green card. If the TN expires while you're waiting you'll get auto denied though. So there are definitely some risks. The "best way" is to go H1 first but it's getting harder to get that even.
I had to convert from TN to H1B first because TN intent is not to stay here permanant.