If my occupation is not on the TN list...

[slpmom]

I am a speech therapist and my husband is a senior systems analyst.
We are both Canadians.We would like to move to Florida with probable intent to stay permanently. He has a TN visa already because he works in Detroit and crosses the border everyday. I have a master's degree from an American University (but have never worked in the U.S.) and I have 17 years experience here. I also have an uncle in Florida but I have not seen him for 30 years. Both our jobs are in high demand. I have looked on this site but can't find all the answers so here goes:

1) My job is not on the NAFTA list but everything related to it is - such as occupational and physical therapists and psychologists. Could I still get a TN? I've heard of speech therapists moving to the US but don't know how they did it!
2) Since I have a degree from an American U, am I better off trying for an H1B ? (i know they are hard to get but know there is a 20,000 quota if US educated).
3) I don't think any potential employers will submit paperwork for an H1B this April 2009 if I can only start in October 2009 - they say they cannot know that far in advance if there will still be a need in October -they prefer to fill the positions as soon as they are available, if they can.
4)If I got a TN and really liked Florida, would I have to get an H1B before applying for a sponsored Green card to indicate my intent?
5)Is my best bet asking my long lost uncle to sponsor me? Is it a burden for him to do so?

[Steven]

1) well the trick is to make your job fit into the NAFTA list obviously. I suspect you'll fnd most speech therapists being self-employed got an E-2 visa, I know a dentist who did. E visas are for people who are planning on starting up their own businesses and can be renewed indefinitely for 2-year intervals. They require a "substantial" investment - have a look at: http://toronto.usconsulate.gov/content/ ... tion=visas

[Steven]

Eh, for some reason half my post disappeared.

Anyway:

2) No, not really, they mostly go to IT companies who hire people abroad now as they can afford to wait the six months. You do have slightly better odds of getting one with a US master's but that quota fills rapidly too. Hard to say with the recession.

4) TN-1 requires "non-immigrant intent", you can AOS to permanent resident from TN-1 but it's more complicated as it is not dual-intent like H-1B. You basically have to show you had non-immigrant intent all along, which is tricky if it's employment-based sponsorship. If you just happened to meet someone while you were there and got married it's more believable.

5) He's too remote a relative to sponsor you.

[slpmom]

Thanks so much for the quick reply. Well I guess the uncle idea is out of the question and I would not be self-employed so that's no to the E-2. I just found an interesting website for health professionals applying for a TN visa when they are not officially on the NAFTA list: http://www.cgfns.org/sections/programs/vs/. It is basically a accreditation company that certifies your credentials in certain health care fields to help get the TN approved. It was on the website of the American Speech and Hearing Association.
I will investigate companies potentially willing to sponsor an H1B anyway, even if its a long shot.
It is a bummer to have to show "non-immigrant" intent with the TN if you later want a green card. I suppose that means I have to leave my bank accounts open, not sell my house, not tell CRA that I am leaving the country??

[slpmom]

Ok i I found something else. For any health care workers who need a TN visa but aren't on the NAFTA list, there is a credentialing agency that is accepted by the USCIS. Check out:http://www.uscis.gov/propub/DocView/frid/1/1028/1059/1061?hilite=#0-0-0-2077

[Steven]

It is a bummer to have to show "non-immigrant" intent with the TN if you later want a green card. I suppose that means I have to leave my bank accounts open, not sell my house, not tell CRA that I am leaving the country??

It means you must have non-immigrant intent, what that means exactly is highly subjective, but generally it means you must maintain residential ties to Canada. This is hard when you work in various States because they require you to get a local DL and get your car registered there. Having a house is something people think you need but actually that's one thing that doesn't help much because anyone can own a house in Canada.

My personal view on it is that the most iron-clad method is to file taxes as a non-resident in the US and carry on filing taxes in Canada. The only problem with that approach is that it can work out very expensive as Canadian rates are generally higher, although if you're only going for 1-3 years there isn't much point moving your tax home to the US anyway. Unless you enjoy paperwork.