NAFTA

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is a trilateral trade bloc in North America created to form special economic and trade relationships by the governments of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

NAFTA facilitates the entry of certain citizens of Mexico and Canada into the U.S. NAFTA affects four categories of visas (1) business visitors (B-1); (2) traders and investors (E1, E2); (3) intra-company transferees (L-1); and (4) professionals (TN).

Business Visitor under NAFTA (B-1)

A B-1 visa holder is allowed to engage in commercial transactions in the U.S. Such activities may include negotiating contracts; litigation; consulting with a business; participating in scientific, educational, professional or business conventions, conferences, or seminars; and undertaking independent research.

NAFTA also includes a list of activities that are allowed under B-1 status:

Research and Design including technical scientific and statistical researchers conducting independent research or research for an enterprise located in the territory of another Party.
Growth, manufacture and production including harvester owner supervising a harvesting crew admitted under applicable law (applies only to harvesting of agricultural crops: Grain, fiber, fruit and vegetables).
Purchasing and production management personnel conducting commercial transactions for an enterprise located in the territory of another Party.
Marketing including market researchers and analyst conducting independent research or analysis, or research or analysis for an enterprise located in the territory of another Party. Trade fair and promotional personnel attending a trade convention.
Sales: sales representatives and agents taking orders or negotiating contracts for goods or services for an enterprise located in the territory of another Party but not delivering goods or providing services. Buyers purchasing for an enterprise located in the territory of another Party.
Distribution including transportation operators transporting goods or passengers to the United States, or loading and transporting goods or passengers from the United States to the territory of another Party.
Customs brokers performing brokerage duties associated with the export of goods from the United States to or through Canada.
After-sales service including installers, repair and maintenance personnel, and supervisors, possessing specialized knowledge essential to the seller’s contractual obligation, performing services or training workers to perform services, pursuant to a warranty or other service contract incidental to the sale of commercial or industrial equipment or machinery, including computer software, purchased from an enterprise located outside the United States, during the life of the warranty or service agreement (The commercial or industrial equipment or machinery, including computer software, must have been manufactured outside the United States.)
NAFTA also allows for financial services, management, public relations and tourism personal under a section called “general services.” Generally, a B-1 visa holder must be compensated from a source outside the U.S.

Frequently Asked Questions about NAFTA

How Can Professionals from Mexico and Canada Work in the United States?

Professionals of Canada or Mexico may work in the U.S. under the following conditions:

Applicant is a citizen of Canada or Mexico;
Profession is on the NAFTA list;
Position in the U.S. requires a NAFTA professional;
Mexican or Canadian applicant is to work in a prearranged full-time or part-time job, for a U.S. employer. Self employment is not permitted;
Professional Canadian or Mexican citizen has the qualifications of the profession

The requirements for applying for citizens of Canada and Mexico, shown below, are different.

What are the Requirements for Canadian Citizens?

Canadian citizens usually do not need a visa as a NAFTA Professional, although a visa can be issued to qualified TN visa applicants upon request. However, a Canadian residing in another country with a non-Canadian spouse and children would need a visa to enable the spouse and children to be able to apply for a visa to accompany or join the NAFTA Professional, as a TD visa holder.

What is the Required Documentation?

A Canadian citizen without a TN visa can apply at a U.S. port of entry with all of the following:

Request for admission under TN status to Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. immigration officer;
Employment Letter - Evidence of professional employment. See Employment Letter below;
Proof of professional qualifications, such as transcripts of grades, licenses, certificates, degrees, and/or records of previous employment;
Proof of ability to meet applicable license requirements;
Proof of Canadian citizenship—Canadian citizens may present a passport, as visas are not required, or they may provide secondary evidence, such as a birth certificate. However, Canadian citizens traveling to the United States from outside the Western Hemisphere are required to present a valid passport at the port-of-entry.

What are the Requirements for Mexican Citizens?

As of January 1, 2004, the procedures were simplified for Mexicans by removing the requirement for petition approval and for filing of a labor condition application. Mexicans are no longer subject to numerical limitation for these professionals. Mexican citizens still require a visa to request admission to the United States.

What are the Requirements for a Spouse and Children?

A spouse and children (unmarried children under the age of 21) who are accompanying or following to join NAFTA Professionals (TN visa holders) may receive a derivative TD visa. Applicants must demonstrate a bona fide spousal or parent-child relationship to the principal TN visa holder. Dependents do not have to be citizens of Mexico or Canada. Spouses and children cannot work while in the U.S., but they are permitted to study.

Canadian citizen spouses and children do not need visas, but they must have the following documents at the port of entry:

Proof of Canadian citizenship;
Proof of relationship to the principal applicant, such as marriage certificate and birth certificate; and
Photocopies of entry documents of the principal applicant.

Mexican citizen spouses and children must apply for TD non-immigrant visas at a U.S. embassy or consulate.

If the spouse and children are not Canadian citizens, they must get a TD non-immigrant visa from a U.S. embassy or consulate. They must contact the U.S. embassy or consulate that serves their area for information on how to make visa applications.

Spouses or children following to join must show a valid I-94, thereby providing proof that the principal TN visa holder is maintaining his/her TN visa status.

What is the Duration of Stay?

The maximum period of admission into the U.S is three years. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) grants extensions of stay in time amounts of three years. There is no limit on the number of years a TN visa holder can stay in the United States. However, the TN visa status is not for permanent residence.