TN Letter Template

The template below provides an example of a letter that can be prepared by a department for a TN applicant. Refer to the USMCA Schedule of Occupations in drafting the TN letter.

Advice

Don’t use the employment offer letter in a TN application. The offer letter generated by a Stanford HR or other unit is a contract for employment, and in important ways, it doesn’t contain enough information for the CBP officer to consider the application; for example, the Stanford title often won’t identify which occupation from the Schedule the applicant seeks to work in. In other ways it likely has far too much information; the CBP doesn’t need to know about benefits or other elements that are unrelated to the TN transaction, which is, fundamentally, an application for work authorization.

The purpose of the TN letter is to explain exactly how the applicant is qualified to be employed at Stanford in a specific job. It has to be clear about which occupation the TN employee is to work in: the occupations described in the Schedule of Occupations can be very specific or extremely general; few, if any actual Stanford job titles correspond directly to the occupations listed. Review the list for disciplines (Accountant, Engineer, Mathematician, etc.), and be aware of the “catch-all” occupations, such as one of the “Scientist” fields, “Research Assistant,” Scientific Technician,” or “Teacher.” Not all Stanford jobs necessarily fall under one of the occupations, however, and if you are frustrated in your search for a “workable” occupation, TN status might not be appropriate.

Components of the letter

The consular officer has only anecdotal knowledge of what workers in the occupations do, so begin by describing what a worker’s tasks are in the occupation you’ve chosen. For help in finding some specific language, try a browser search using “o*net” as a leader to the occupation. The string “O*net scientific technician” will generate a number of hits, for example, that you can choose from to lift language for the duties a scientific technician might have in a variety of fields.

Now that you’ve described the Treaty occupation in which the prospective employee is to work at Stanford, next describe how the specific tasks of the TN worker correspond to the duties you’ve described for the occupation. The job Stanford is offering must require at least the educational and/or experiential preparation noted in the list, so explain why the job Stanford is offering requires the worker to possess at least that much education and/or experience. It’s fine if it requires more, even much more.

Describe what credentials the worker possesses and how they meet the requirements listed in the Schedule of Occupations.

Be clear about salary, benefits and the exact location where the work will take place, including multiple sites if that’s the case, as long as the work at all the sites is under Stanford’s control.

The TN letter also should specify how long the period of admission requested will be. The TN program allows a period of admission up to three years, and most applicants are eager to be admitted for that amount of time, if for no other reason than to maximize perceived benefit. The CBP officer, however, is free to make a unilateral decision about how long the work described should take. Remember that this is a temporary classification, not intended to permit employment of an indefinite term. If the work anticipated is something that can be accomplished in less than three years, it’s important not to attempt to disguise that.

The TN letter spells out exactly which credentials the applicant holds. Most occupations in the Schedule of Occupations are listed as requiring a baccalaureate degree. If the applicant’s degree or credential was not earned in the U.S., Mexico, or Canada, an equivalency will need to accompany the materials. An equivalency can be obtained from a professional evaluation service.

An experience requirement can also be imposed if the Stanford job is one that inherently requires it, as it appears in the Stanford Job Library (authentication required). In either case, experience in the specific occupation has to be documented by a former employer who can describe exactly how the applicant acquired the experience, over what period of time, giving a job title and name of the employing company.

Suggested Format/Text Of TN Letter

Address (see below)

Date

Applicant: [NAME]

Subject: TN nonimmigrant status

Dear Officer:

This letter supports the use of TN status by the referenced applicant, for whom Stanford University wishes to employ from (start date) to (end date), a period of no more than three years, as a (use occupational title from the Schedule of Occupations). The annual salary for the position is $X.

The USMCA, formerly NAFTA, provides for the admission of workers who will be employed temporarily in professional occupations described in Appendix 1603.D.1 to Annex 1603 of the NAFTA. The employment of the beneficiary is consistent with the USMCA both in terms of the professional employment the beneficiary carries out and the education the beneficiary possesses.

Stanford University is an internationally-known institution of higher learning and research, located south of San Francisco, California. It employs about 17,000 people in various professional disciplines, teaching and support/administrative positions. Describe the department, lab, or venue where the work will take place, giving general information about the kind of work performed, research carried out, and the purpose or objective of the work.

Describe the specific job the employee will perform. Be sure to use the occupational title and/or describe it in terms of the job specified in the Schedule of Occupations, explaining methodologies used to do the work, research or teaching, tools used, and so on. State the term of the appointment or hire and the salary, keeping in mind that this information must be consistent with that provided earlier and that TN status is limited to 3 years.

Describe how the employee is qualified to fill the position, giving educational level, where the education was gained, any training or skills the employee has that are used in performing the job, and other evidence that the employee is specifically qualified to do the work. This may include mention of publications or other professional accomplishments.

We are grateful to you for facilitating this request. Please call me if there are any issues or questions relevant to the work of this department or the applicant's role.

Sincerely,
Chair/Principal Investigator

(email and telephone number)

Address to Use for Canadians applying at the Canadian/U.S. Border

Inspector/Free Trade Specialist
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
(name of port of entry or pre-flight inspection airport, if known)

Address to Use for Mexicans applying at a U.S. Consulate in Mexico

U.S. Consular Officer

Nonimmigrant Visa Section