TN denied by USCIS after being approved at the Border

W

Wonderer123

New Member
Hi Everyone,
I have recently received a job offer from an employer in the US, and the immigration lawyer has strongly advised me to file with the USCIS. His argument was that my file will be reviewed by the USCIS even after I received an approval at the border, and it can be potentially denied. He continued that if such and such happens, I will have only 24 hours to leave the US! I find this line of argument a bit puzzling since:

a- I have searched extensively and even wrote a bot to help me with the search, but I have not found a single instance of such a case happening. I was wondering if anybody has ever heard of such a case, and if not, whether this is at least a viable hypothetical possibility?

b- I am also puzzled by the consequences of being denied by the USCIS, since I am a Canadian citizen, and I should be able to stay in the US at least as a visitor. So I don't see why I should leave the country in 24 hours.

Can you please help?

Thanks
 
Wonderer123 said:
a- I have searched extensively and even wrote a bot to help me with the search, but I have not found a single instance of such a case happening. I was wondering if anybody has ever heard of such a case, and if not, whether this is at least a viable hypothetical possibility?
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A lot is changing in US immigration and has changed under Trump. However I am also not aware of a case where this has happened.

The attorney may be referring to a situation where someone initially gets their TN at the border but then later applies to renew within the US by mail via the USCIS. The initial approval at the border does not guarantee a later renewal by the USCIS by mail. Mind you, even an initial approval by USCIS wouldn't guarantee a successful renewal by USCIS three years later, but the attorney may feel the risk of a problem with renewal is less if the USCIS (rather than CBP at the border) is involved from the beginning.

I suspect that a big part of the reason why attorneys push to do TN's by mail rather than at the border is because the employer--and the attorney--has more control over the process if you do it by mail. In that case the attorney sees all the documents and has complete control over the case. At the border the attorney doesn't know exactly what is said and what additional documents may be shown, so attorneys may be less comfortable with this approach.

Wonderer123 said:
b- I am also puzzled by the consequences of being denied by the USCIS, since I am a Canadian citizen, and I should be able to stay in the US at least as a visitor. So I don't see why I should leave the country in 24 hours.
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In this, however, you are not 100% correct. A Canadian who loses some non-visitor status does not automatically revert to B-2 (visitor) status. For example, let's say you enter in TN status for three years, but leave your job (quit or let go) after just one month. Although a Canadian entering as a visitor usually can stay up to six months, in this case you would be out of status and wouldn't automatically revert to B-2 visitor status for six months. You would need to apply to change status, and if you are found to have been in violation of your existing status, the application could be denied.
 
It is NOT true that border TNs will be reviewed by USCIS. The reverse is true however. CBP can deny a USCIS TN at any entry, particularly the first entry after applying form outside. Few immig lawyers are really cognizant of TN processes. As CalGC said, the yare more comfortable with I-129, because they don't understand and have little control over border process.

And this case would illustrate the importance of CANCELLING any USCIS I-129 application as soon as one gets a border TN. This has been the consistent advice here for 15 years!
 
nelsona said:
It is NOT true that border TNs will be reviewed by USCIS. The reverse is true however. CBP can deny a USCIS TN at any entry, particularly the first entry after applying form outside. Few immig lawyers are really cognizant of TN processes. As CalGC said, the yare more comfortable with I-129, because they don't understand and have little control over border process.

And this case would illustrate the importance of CANCELLING any USCIS I-129 application as soon as one gets a border TN. This has been the consistent advice here for 15 years!
Click to expand...

Just wanna make sure I understand correctly, CBP (i.e. border officer at POE) issued TN status will NOT be reviewed by USCIS. Basically, I show up, submit my docs and if they approve me that's it, I can go on working without a worry for my status. Is that correct?
 
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