Currently on OPT, Chinese spouse, should I apply for TN status immediately?

H

hersheys19

New Member
Hi all, I recently graduated from a US law school and will start work at a law firm in a few months. I have a current OPT status and OPT card (EAD, I guess?). I've read most of the threads here and it seems like I should apply for TN status right now, or that there is no reason not to anyway. However it seems like most of the other posters with experience have spouses who are also Canadian. My spouse is Chinese, so in order for her to join me here if I go to TN status, she would need to apply for a B visa?

I suppose I will have to apply for TN status sometime before my OPT runs out anyway so it may be a moot point, however are there any pitfalls or other concerns for my spouse if she and my child are here in the US on F-2 and I apply for TN status?

I would appreciate any comments you might have.
 
Spouse/children of TNs get TD visas, not B. There is no disadvantage to filing now, other than you/employer are required to withhold FICA from your paycheck. Spouse/child can change to TD within US if already here.
 
Yes, I've being doing a little more research and now understand that dependents get TD visas. Does anyone know what the timeline for obtaining a TD visa at an embassy would be? I think ideally I would like to then apply for TN now, but I would like my dependents to then get TD and be able to join before the end of Aug, Is that a realistic timeline?

Thanks for your comments.
 
You may read more reliable information about TN visa at this sites:


travel.state.gov
 
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It won't br more reliable than here of course.

Check with embassy for current interview schedule.
 
nelsona said:
It won't br more reliable than here of course.

Check with embassy for current interview schedule.
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I would think so, but my concern is that1) it seems to be significantly more expensive to obtain the TN here in the US as opposed to at the border - not sure what it would be at the embassy. Obviously not that big a deal but more seriously, if I obtain TN, my spouse who currently has an F-2 visa would not be able to use her F-2 to enter the US, but can only do TD, so the timing of this is tricky because I would rather not obtain the TN here, go to China, try to obtain TD for her and fail for some reason and then not be able to travel with her back to the US.

I think what I will do is stay on the F-1 for now, travel back to China, try to get all of our TN/TDs at the embassy, and if something goes wrong, we can still use F-1/F-2 to enter the US.
 
Who said you needed to get it by mail within US? You can go to border, get TN, and then have her take your I-94 copy to the consulate. She will need to go to consulate, no question. Might as well do it now.
As to YOU getting TN at consulate, since they know you live in US, they may say you need to process at border (rare that consulate will process TN, but you could try). Your better bet is getting TN at border, then having them get TDs at consulate (the fact they already have F2 means they will not be denied TD)>
 
nelsona said:
Who said you needed to get it by mail within US? You can go to border, get TN, and then have her take your I-94 copy to the consulate. She will need to go to consulate, no question. Might as well do it now.
As to YOU getting TN at consulate, since they know you live in US, they may say you need to process at border (rare that consulate will process TN, but you could try). Your better bet is getting TN at border, then having them get TDs at consulate (the fact they already have F2 means they will not be denied TD)>
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Thank you, I think this is what I will try to do. When you say border, does that mean I need to get to one of the land border entry points? I called the CBP office closest to me and they don't do TNs, the closest major international airport to me is Philadelphia, I have attempted to get in touch wit them through many phone numbers but it seems like no one actually works there.
 
So I have been informed that I can only make applications in person at a designated border crossing, or on my reentry to the country. So I guess I will be looking at cheap return flights to Buffalo.
 
Yes. Of course you must leave country and re-enter to get TN (or apply by mail to USCIS with I-129). Simplest to just go to any border.
 
First, I want to say thanks to all the posters who have responded with their invaluable comments.
A couple more questions as I am gearing up for a possible trip to the border:

Start date: I asked my employer for a letter with a start date close to when I am planning my trip. However, the way law firm employment works is that I have a job offer contingent on passing the bar. I was actually planning on doing the trip before the bar exam, but would this pose any problems on the CBP side? Obviously I will need to wait for a response from my employer to see what their attitude will be, they may not be willing to actually supply the letter with a start date different from my "actual" start date which is after the bar exam.

Application location: If I don't make a separate trip to the border, another option I am considering is flying to Toronto on my way to China, applying for the TN in the airport, and then flying out of Toronto without returning to the US until lets say 2 weeks later. Would this work? It's not an issue at the land border because you could just cross the border again on foot, but there is no land border in the airport in Toronto, so do I need to somehow cross the border immediately after having my TN approved?
 
hersheys19 said:
another option I am considering is flying to Toronto on my way to China, applying for the TN in the airport, and then flying out of Toronto without returning to the US until lets say 2 weeks later. Would this work
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It wont. You need to formally request entry into the US (and then actually enter) to get TN
 
hersheys19 said:
First, I want to say thanks to all the posters who have responded with their invaluable comments.
A couple more questions as I am gearing up for a possible trip to the border:

Start date: I asked my employer for a letter with a start date close to when I am planning my trip. However, the way law firm employment works is that I have a job offer contingent on passing the bar. I was actually planning on doing the trip before the bar exam, but would this pose any problems on the CBP side? Obviously I will need to wait for a response from my employer to see what their attitude will be, they may not be willing to actually supply the letter with a start date different from my "actual" start date which is after the bar exam.

Application location: If I don't make a separate trip to the border, another option I am considering is flying to Toronto on my way to China, applying for the TN in the airport, and then flying out of Toronto without returning to the US until lets say 2 weeks later. Would this work? It's not an issue at the land border because you could just cross the border again on foot, but there is no land border in the airport in Toronto, so do I need to somehow cross the border immediately after having my TN approved?
Click to expand...


Only Canadian and Mexican can apply for TN, just a reminder.
 
hersheys19 said:
tions as I am gearing up for a possible trip to the border:

Start date: I aske
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hersheys19 said:
First, I want to say thanks to all the posters who have responded with their invaluable comments.
A couple more questions as I am gearing up for a possible trip to the border:

Start date: I asked my employer for a letter with a start date close to when I am planning my trip. However, the way law firm employment works is that I have a job offer contingent on passing the bar. I was actually planning on doing the trip before the bar exam, but would this pose any problems on the CBP side? Obviously I will need to wait for a response from my employer to see what their attitude will be, they may not be willing to actually supply the letter with a start date different from my "actual" start date which is after the bar exam.

Application location: If I don't make a separate trip to the border, another option I am considering is flying to Toronto on my way to China, applying for the TN in the airport, and then flying out of Toronto without returning to the US until lets say 2 weeks later. Would this work? It's not an issue at the land border because you could just cross the border again on foot, but there is no land border in the airport in Toronto, so do I need to somehow cross the border immediately after having my TN approved?
Click to expand...

I don't suggest your wife to apply her TD in China. just go to any US embassy in Canada if she can. My wife is Chinese as well, she applied for TD in Beijing at first, the officer there doesn't really famillar with the TN/TD visa type so she got denied. then she travelled to Vancouver and tried there about 2 weeks later, it was a very easy interview, she got the visa in 3 days.
 
Thanks for the tips guys, unfortunately my wife does not have a Canadian visa (right now) and has never been to Canada. If Beijing doesn't work then we may have to try and apply from in the US. She does have an F2 though, so perhaps like Nelson says that might be helpful.
 
andyz1985 said:
I don't suggest your wife to apply her TD in China. just go to any US embassy in Canada if she can. My wife is Chinese as well, she applied for TD in Beijing at first, the officer there doesn't really famillar with the TN/TD visa type so she got denied. then she travelled to Vancouver and tried there about 2 weeks later, it was a very easy interview, she got the visa in 3 days.
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Hi Andy, do you know how the process to apply for a TD in Beijing goes? Did she have to go through the DS-160 process?
 
Waiting to board the plane to the border now. I've also started DS-160 applications for my wife and son under the Beijing location. I'm a little apprehensive that if I get TN approved, their F-2s will no longer be valid, and if there is some kind of problem in Beijing for the TD, then they won't be able to come to the US at all. Any thoughts?
 
So I didn't end up doing it, and in two weeks my wife and I will come to the US on F visas. If I end up going to the border to get a TN while my wife is still in the US on F-2, can she do an I-539 and request change to TD while still i the US? Will she be "out of status" in the period between when I get TN and she applies for CoS?
 
hersheys19 said:
So I didn't end up doing it, and in two weeks my wife and I will come to the US on F visas. If I end up going to the border to get a TN while my wife is still in the US on F-2, can she do an I-539 and request change to TD while still i the US? Will she be "out of status" in the period between when I get TN and she applies for CoS?
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Well guys, I think our plan now is to apply for a tourist visa for my wife so that she can travel to Toronto, and then turn around and apply for TN/TD. One issue: Can my son who holds a Canadian passport enter Canada under his Canadian passport and then get TD on his Chinese passport? Does CPB care under which passport he entered Canada?
 
He should not bother getting a TD consular visa. he merely needs to show up at border with your proof of TN and he will get TD status immediately.
Only your Chinese spouse needs a consular visa.
 
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