IN THIS GUIDE · Seasonal and intermittent work: how a forester should hold a TN across several short entries
Start with the TN eligibility and application overview
One admission can cover a period, not a project
TN admission is granted for a period rather than for the days actually worked, and an initial period of up to three years is available. A professional admitted for that period may leave and re-enter during it, so intermittent work does not require a fresh application before each trip; the I-94 record and the employer letter carry over. What matters is that the underlying engagement continues to exist. If the U.S. company's retainer lapses between assignments, the basis for the status lapses with it, so the letter should describe a continuing engagement with intermittent deployment rather than a single block of fieldwork. A clear end date is useful, but it should not obscure whether the professional relationship persists between deployments. Keep later task letters, invoices, and contact details with the original submission so a return trip can be explained without reconstructing the arrangement at the counter.
Repeated entries invite the temporariness question
TN is a nonimmigrant classification and requires temporary intent, which is not the same as a short stay. Officers become interested when a pattern of entries suggests the applicant is effectively living and working in the United States indefinitely under a status designed for temporary professional work. A forester spending twelve weeks a year on U.S. blocks, keeping a Canadian home, Canadian clients and a Canadian tax residence, has an easy answer. Someone who has renewed for nine consecutive years, sold the Canadian house and has no remaining Canadian work has a harder one. The file should keep evidence of the Canadian side of her practice current. The relevant comparison is not the number of crossings but the facts that explain them. A current U.S. assignment, a documented Canadian base, and truthful answers give an officer concrete facts to assess; improvised explanations make ordinary travel appear uncertain.
Canadian client work is outside the question
Work physically performed in Canada for Canadian clients is outside U.S. work-authorization rules. Work physically performed in the United States is not exempt merely because the client is Canadian. While in the United States in TN status, the forester may perform only the prearranged professional employment authorized for the identified U.S. or foreign employer or entity; TN does not authorize her to establish a U.S. self-employed practice or perform unrelated Canadian-client work from a U.S. location. The lawful structure keeps the approved U.S. engagement with its identified entity and the separate Canadian engagements performed in Canada unless another U.S. authorization applies. The professional should keep calendars and work product separated by country when both practices exist. That record is useful commercially as well as for explaining where services were performed if a question arises on a later admission.
What the file should contain before the first entry
Proof of Canadian citizenship, the degree parchment or an official transcript, and a letter from the U.S. company describing forestry work in the profession's own terms, the expected pattern of deployment, the period and the remuneration. Because the entry for forester accepts a baccalaureate degree, no credential evaluation is needed. A short statement listing her Canadian practice and any ownership interests removes the self-employment question. She should also expect to explain, in one sentence, why the company needs a forester rather than a technician, because that is the sentence the classification turns on. If the company changes the duties, pay structure, or entity that directs the work, compare the new facts with the letter before travel. A revised document prepared in advance is preferable to discovering a material change after arrival.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.