moving from canadian office down to US office same company

bizybee
New Member



Joined: 16 Mar 2008
Posts: 9
Location: Vancouver, BC

Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 11:29 pm

 

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i am currently working for a canadian company at the canadian office and will be moving down to the US office under TN status, doing the same work.

my current title is Software Engineer (has been for last 3 years with this company.) My question is, in my TN employement letter should my company say that i will be a Computer Systems Analyst or a Software Engineer?

the work that i do is very much that of a Computer Systems Analyst under the USCIS description (i'm not simply a programmer) but would it not be suspicious to the border officer if i all of a sudden change my title to Computer Systems Analyst after being a Software Engineer when i'm going to do the same work i've done for the last 3 years? i guess if asked i could say i was a Computer Systems Analyst all along but i prefer to be honest here if i can (and no one really calls themselves that anymore these days )

seems like its just all semantics but maybe the USCIS takes semantics quite seriously. would they even let anyone in under Softare Engineer (i don't have an engineering degree)

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Reba
Moderator


Canuck in NC

Joined: 16 Jul 2004
Posts: 1174
Location: North Carolina

Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 5:05 am

 

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How long do they plan to keep you down there? Maybe an L1B inter-company transfer would be a better option?
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kelapstick
Junior Member



Joined: 14 Apr 2008
Posts: 23
Location: Yerington NV

Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 3:36 pm

 

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Although the L1 might be the way to go, I wouldn't wory too much about your NAFTA title being different than your past title.

I got my TN as a Scientific Technologist and the three previous titles on my resume were: Ventilation Technician, Underground Surveyor and Engineering Technologist.

The offer letter said I was going to be working as a Sci Tech (although my actual title on site here is Project Engineer), and I had two letters (from previous co-workers/supervisors) stating that I had worked in the capacity of a Sci Tech in the appropriate field (I was required to show relivent experience).

Having said that your employment letter must state the NAFTA job title, even if the title within your company is going to be different, but that may be something you may not want to share at the border.

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bizybee
New Member



Joined: 16 Mar 2008
Posts: 9
Location: Vancouver, BC

Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 9:13 pm

 

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i was also thinking L1 would make sense but it is more difficult to apply for in that it costs more, requires more time and effort on the part of my employer, might require my employer to consult with lawyers regarding the application process and takes more time for the application to be approved by the USCIC (whereas TN is instantaneous and cheap)

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Reba
Moderator


Canuck in NC

Joined: 16 Jul 2004
Posts: 1174
Location: North Carolina

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 4:00 am

 

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They must have changed the L1 process then. When I got mine years ago, it was same day application and approval at the airport POE, same as TN.
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Steven
CanuckAbroad VIP



Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 1122
Location: Calgary

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 11:06 am

 

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L-1B is the way to go, for Canadian citizens you can apply at the POE (unless something has changed but I don't think it has). Less paperwork and the paperwork is usually simpler, it just costs more ($820). It's going to be a lot easier to show you are a skilled person working for the Canadian office rather than arguing about semantics to do with programmer vs. analyst, and a programmer is not an analyst anyway so you would have problems with TN-1.

"Software engineer" is a big red flag to any experienced USCIS officer because the Indian software companies bring them in by the truckload on L-1B. If they've dealt with applications before they're going to know an analyst is not a software engineer.

The only real snag is if you plan on staying longer than the five-year L-1B limit, but you can always try for TN-1 after that.

In addition L-1B is dual-intent, so if they want to sponsor you for PR status or you want to get hitched to an American, it's much simpler.
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Tony Montana
Junior Member


Big Blue Bull

Joined: 02 Jul 2008
Posts: 13
Location: Montreal

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 11:27 am

 

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I totally agree to the past post the L1b is the way to go. If you are supervising supervisors or professional you could apply for an L1A. The advantage 7 year limitation and the possibility to apply for PR without the Labor cert and visa numbers are immediately available for you. Therefore no backlog for the PR which you should get in 12 to 18 months

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bizybee
New Member



Joined: 16 Mar 2008
Posts: 9
Location: Vancouver, BC

Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:44 pm

 

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after some digging on the USCIS website, i found out you guys are correct. Canadians can apply for an L-1 at the POE.

from the USCIS website:
"If the person is a Canadian citizen applying for admission as an L-1 under the North American Free Trade Agreement, the petition may be filed at the port of entry when the person applies for admission;"

the fees are the same though ($820 as mentioned above)

Thanks for the help!

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