To those who have worked in the US on a TN visa, what would be the tips you'd suggest to avoid getting rejected at customs? Apparently you shouldn't mention terms like programming under Computer Analyst and if not, how else would you define your role that does involve programming/SW design? For reference, I'm an EE by degree but have been working as a SWE since graduation. #workvisa
stick to the script in the packet the lawyers put together. don’t wander off. if asked questions, reiterate what was in the packet. be polite and professional with the immigration agent, even when they start chirping or questioning your experience
Did you ever get rejected or someone you know get rejected? I personally think it’s nearly impossible to get rejected. I have applied for TN 4 times. First couple of times was for a temp agency that gave me a very unprofessional job letter with a lot of typos and there wasn’t any lawyer involved, I still got it.
During the interview forget the words "programmer" and "program". I am dead serious. Do not use these words in any sentence you utter. You do not program, you create engineering solutions to customer problems. You design features for products. You implement them. You do not program and you are not a programmer. Many an officer will try to get you to say the P-word and deny you the visa because programmers are not on the list, engineers are. Yes, a lot of them are jealous of you because you are a foreigner who works in tech and they think you make big bucks. They hate your guts. Also, certain border crossings seem to employ the same assholes for a decade. When I was on TN it was common knowledge to avoid the Toronto airport for this reason. My denial was there. Oh, and reason for the denial? Offer letter wasn't printed on fancy enough paper with letterhead.
Thanks for the insight! As an engineer, I wouldn't be applying under the CSA category and rather Engineering, yes? Also, can you add the word "Software" like "...offering Software engineering solutions to the customer/product". Yeah I won't be going to Toronto thankfully. They don't need an offer letter do they?
You'll need an offer letter, your diplomas (original and copies, yes - bring the giant piece of paper!), materials about the company (I printed sales material like white papers and company info from the website). The offer letter needs to look official and describe exactly what you'll do (but tailored to TN requirements). Also bring proof of Canadian citizenship and your resume. And maybe find a TN checklist online in case I am forgetting something. Yes, you are probably applying as an engineer. For me this was a bit easier since my degree is in computer engineering. If yours is CS you'll have to work a bit harder to prove you are not a programmer :)
Not applying will ensure you never get rejected
only if you had spent some crucial seconds doing something more productive instead of responding here...