TN Status Denied First Attempt (Engineer). Help!

Eriku

Registered Users (C)
Hello, I was googling on the TN Status and learning more about it and found this forum.

I read some similar situations in what I experienced.

This past weekend I went to Pearson International and was rejected for my TN Status - Engineer classification. My actual title and role is "Associate Producer" for a game development company. I will be managing 8 - 10 other engineers in the group.

In my letter, my company's lawyers wrote I would be managing 8 - 10 engineers. The officer insisted that I was not an engineer but a Manager. Even though I explained about my various engineering tasks, such as technical documentation, analyzing problems and designing solutions ( in the 3D Render Area ) he stated that I should get a H1B rather than a TN. I also know that as an Associate producer, it's a very weird occupation to be listed as a Engineer since we deal with with scheduling and project management, in addition to engineering design and implementations.

My company hired me on a TN because the H1B are used up for this year. Some background info, I have been a software engineer / programmer for the past 1.5 years at another game studio.

My company's lawyers are redrafting a new letter for me. But the officer said that he would be noting this in the database. I am afraid this might affect my chances to get across. My question is, how should I prepare for the 2nd attempt? Is there any advice people would give me who have been similar situations? What are things that I must avoid to say on my 2nd time, I expect to be grilled badly again.

Thank you.

On a side note: The officer started off with the question "why are you working in the US". I replied because "of a better career opportunity" and then he said that I should be looking for a canadian job and not the US. How would i have best answered those type of questions?
 
If you're not really doing the "grunt work" of writing the specs and/or coding in the application and you're truly "managing" these 8 to 10 people then I'd seriously take a look at "Management Consultant" category.
Another option, probably just as risky, would be as a "Scientific/Technician Technologist" TN which would get around the questions about "do you write code" that you may encounter. Trick with this is that someone, your immediate manager or immediate managers manager, would have to have a Bachelor's in Engineering discipline. Have you actually talked to this company's lawyers or are you getting your information at arms length through the HR person/department?
I'd be very tempted to try to get them to do the MC TN rooute and I'd be damn certain I personally spoke to the lawyer(s) to ascertain whether they have a clue about other TN categories.

YMMV I am not a lawyer just a Canuck with 11 TN's under the belt
 
Hey THanks for the reply.

Well I won't be coding, but i will be doing ALOT of the technical grunt documentation. I also got to figure out alot of thw what's wrong, and why, and then plan what to do.

Any further suggestions?
 
Thank you. I will definately read up on the site and the job definitions.

I was wondering, if the customs officer does ask about my last case, how do i answer his question without telling him too much information.

"I redrafted my TN Status application to better address any missing information from my first attempt." is that okay? or do they want to know why the job definition would change?
 
I just received some information from my lawyer, I was wondering what you people thought about the idea of crossing at another POE.

Is it true that Pearson has had a history for being quite stringent for TN applications?
 
Did you get an official rejection filed in the computer? or did they just withdraw it?
 
Encountered exact same problem when submitting TN for Software Manager (Software Engineer) for a game company.

It took a phone call to the Supervisor of all Border Points and several calls to the Supervisor of a different border crossing before it was finally issued.
 
It was rejected and they said I should be applying for a H1B.

The lawyers tried calling the officer, but didn't try calling the supervisors.

Do you have any advice for me from your interview? any questions i should be aware of?
 
Didn't have an interview because it was approved by the head of the border crossing who told them to process it.

For an interview, I would focus on the technical parts of the job in technical terms.

Suggestion would be to get a letter written just for the TN that has software engineer (and leave out your internal job title) They don't care what title you use internally. Also include a few job duties (especially technical ones) It is also better to have a start and end date. The floor supervisor said that the letter doesn't need to have dates; but the problem is the counter person processing has the right to refuse it for whatever they want.

The woman filed an official denial of entry with fingerprints and photograph (an I-210 I think).......so it couldn't just be resubmitted at another crossing. Thankfully, the company's lawyer worked on it. I would never do a TN without a lawyer or recommend people do it that way.
 
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