TN visa to GC, what a f'ing pain
It's done. Had my interview last week and finally got the letter that my GC is being printed. Should be in my hands soon! But what a horrible experience it's been. I've been a prisoner in this country for a loooong time because the TN Visa isn't compatible with applying for a GC. You can do it, but then you can't travel, an even when you in theory can travel you live in fear of denial so you don't actually travel anyway. I missed TWO Christmases at home with my family, TWO Thanksgiving, summer vacation. In all that time only saw my parents twice and my brother once when they visited me. There were factors that delayed my application due to needing to get a bunch of hard to get documents, that just extended the pain. Strongly urge anyone in a TN to apply for H1b before greencard. TN may seem convenient but IT'S A TRAP. Under H1b I would have been free to come and go and would not have missed out on so much. Plus I see now how many people are saying their TN got denied at the border after being accepted for years. You live in constant anxiety of being refused entry at any time. Especially these days. My wait is finally over but it had so much impact on my life and my stress levels for both myself and my wife. Glad I'm through but it's bittersweet, looking back at all the things I missed out on with family and friends.
I can relate totally! Im still on TN (from MX) and changing employers in the near future. But every time I renew I am super stressed. I will definitely switch to H1B if my new employer is up for it.
/rant Now the important, what was your i-485 receipt date?
9 or 10 months ago, around May
You packed your suitcase and bought a plane ticket and came here, now you nag about being stuck here for two years. I have friends with grad degrees waiting years to win the h1b lottery and every time apply for a reentry visa. Be thankful you had the luxury of using TN, millions don’t and suffer.
Sure, but I had no idea how painful it was going to be, hence this post to warn others. I would not do it again. I'd go h1b. Or at least switch from TN to H1-B before applying GC. I don't see how people in h1b suffer, really. I don't plan on retiring in the US. I'll go back home. I'm here to work until then so actually a perpetually renewing capless H1b would have been fine by me even if it never got to GC: You can travel and have a good life under that. Going home for the holidays is no problem. You have a full life. But on TN once you file GC there's no going back. Filing that application pretty much guarantees you any future TN entry will be denied. You have to stay inside the US until you complete the GC and you are stuck in limbo until you do.
Being on TN, you had no idea how painful and stressful it is. You don't know shit about being on H1 unless you are on H1. So yours is just better of the two evils.
Curious what do they ask during the interview?
More or less it's a review of the forms and follow on questions to your answers. They walk through the i140 and AOS form and ask every question on the form ticking them off as they go. Sometimes they challenge your answer or ask for more details. Basically did you lie in the form. Check that your medicals are up to date. They ask you to describe your job and see if it matches what the lawyers put as your JD. Look at your tax returns to see if you get paid what the form says you do. They ask lots of questions about when you got what status and check all your stays in the US to make sure you never overstayed a Visa, that you had valid status when you applied, still have valid status, etc. If you have a spouse they ask a bunch of questions to verify you are really legitimately married, look at photos over the years, etc.
Thank you!
Why don't you just treat it as a temporary thing and plan your future elsewhere? It's not like US has monopoly of jobs.
The jobs here pay much more and while you can renew a TN they get itchy if you renew beyond 6yrs and also your spouse can't work. I do plan to retire outside the US so it's "temporary" in that regard, but that's years in the future.
A few options outside US: Europe, China, other international offices of major tech firms, Canada, Singapore, India
It sucks for sure. Did you consider other alternatives like getting H1b ?
I should have done tn to h1b to GC but I was naive. Words of wisdom to anybody else out there on TN considering GC.
American immigration is a shit show. You can’t expect the almost seamless immigration experience of Canada to America. Once you see Canada’s simple immigration policy where you get a PR in less than 6months the American system is just the most messed up in the planet. If comp was similar in Canada then I would not even think of coming to USA with this shitty system and no healthcare
We need two walls #MAGA to avoid folks like OPs in future.
Why did'nt you use EAD/AP for travelling?
If 2 Christmas’s and 2 thanksgivings are a pain, what about 70 Diwali’s, 70 holis ? Congrats on the blue pill.
You don't miss them, you are free to travel on an h1b or l1. You don't need to miss any of them.
Sure, “let them eat cake”