Read the general professional work overview
Hypothetical example: a veterinarian at a companion-animal clinic in L'Ancienne-Lorette is offered an associate position at a U.S. practice. The Appendix 2 entry for Veterinarian accepts a D.V.M., D.M.V. or Doctor en Veterinaria degree, or a state or provincial licence, so her Québec degree and order membership satisfy the credential. But U.S. practice requires a licence from the state, which is a separate professional process. The file's real problem is sequencing: the clinic wants a start date, the state board wants examinations, and TN wants a prearranged job she can lawfully perform.
Separate the immigration credential from the practice licence
TN's Veterinarian entry is met by her degree; the transcript and diploma, with a translation of the degree title if it is in French, settle that element. Her membership in the Québec professional order is a provincial licence and also satisfies the entry, so both should be carried. Neither is a U.S. state licence. The state board's requirements, typically national examinations and a state application, decide whether she may practise on arrival, and the clinic's offer letter should describe duties she may lawfully perform on the day she starts. An offer to practise fully from day one, when the state licence is months away, describes a job she cannot do, and the letter should be drafted around the truth.
Draft the clinic's letter around the licensing timeline
Ask the clinic to describe the position as a veterinarian, with duties, pay, duration and the reporting relationship, and to state the start date as following the state licence or a provisional or supervised arrangement the board permits. The clinic is the employer and must have arranged the professional work; a relief-vet agency placing her would change the arrangement and needs disclosing. She may not be self-employed in the United States under TN, so any locum work on her own account there is outside the status. If the clinic offers a signing bonus contingent on licensure, that is a commercial term and fine, but it should not be described as pay for work she is not yet permitted to do.
Order the steps and the household
The sequence that works is: state board application and examinations first, because they are slowest and outside anyone's control; then the clinic's final letter with a start date tied to the licence; then, as a Canadian citizen, presentation at a port of entry or a USCIS petition by the clinic. She should not leave her L'Ancienne-Lorette post until the status exists. A spouse accompanying her in TD status may study but not work; a spouse with a profession of his own should be assessed for a separate TN. Children in TD may attend school until 21. Write the board's expected decision date, the letter's signature date and the household's decisions on one page and let the board's date lead.
What else is on your mind?
Is a matching job title enough for TN?Can years of experience replace a degree for TN?Can my own U.S. company employ me under TN?Can my spouse work if I hold TN status?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.