I am a Canadian citizen who has been offered the opportunity to work as a contractor for a U.S. based computer consultant. I would be directly contracting to the consultant and working as a Computer Systems Analyst at various customer sites (which he has support contracts with). I believe that I would qualify as TN status.

• Is there a problem because I would be working under "Contract", as opposed to being a direct employee. I believe that the consultant would prefer to contract my services, as opposed to hiring me as the former route would be much simpler for him to administer (ex. No benefits to pay etc.).

• Some of the customer sites that I would be working at may be located in different states. How do I handle the TN requirement for stating that no special licenses are required to work in the state.

TN workers must be employed by an employer in the United States and not be self-employed professionals. I do not see anything wrong with the fact that your services will be contracted out to other parties pursuant to contracts between the third parties and your consultant employer since you would still be considered an employee of the consultant.

It becomes more complicated when you are merely an independent contractor of the consultant. My suggestion is to make sure you are on the consultant's payroll. It may be possible to argue that you are "employed" without actually being on the consultant's payroll, but you will need a competent professional to help you and even then there are no guarantees.

In general, I do not believe that computer systems analysts require licensure but I am not familiar with the laws of every State. If you are planning on working in specific States, it is always advisable to verify their licensing requirements before making any such statements to the INS.

However, there is no requirement that you make a specific statement regarding licensure. In cases involving lawyers, doctors and the like, the need for licensure is obvious and the INS will ask about it. However, the chances are that the licensing issue will not be relevant in your case. Just make sure that if a particular State requires licensure that you do not work in that jurisdiction without such a license.

After 13 years of employment in several development and managerial capacities in a large Canadian telecommunications equipment manafacturer, I recently established a small consulting company focussing on the conceptual definition and customer value verification of future product opportunities, primarily for the telecommunications industry.

My wife and I are both Canadian Citizen (overseas born), and we both hold a 50% share in our small corporation. We treat ourselves as employees of this corporation. So far, all our work was done for US clients, and we frequently (4 or more times a month) cross the border in our capacity as employee to deal with our US clients. All management decisions (e.g. contract negotiations) are made at our Canadian office. This border crossing pattern is not new for me: in my previous employment I crossed the border numerous times without any major hassle.

How can I ensure continued and unhindered entry in the US given the circumstances I described?

It appears as though you have been entering as a B-1 visitor for business. Because you are also the owner of the company, this would normally not permitted. However, under the expanded B-1 provisions of NAFTA, it appears as though you are permitted to enter as a self-employed professional (in this case, a management consultant assuming that you have a bachelor degree in the field or at least five years of experience in the field) provided that you otherwise meet the existing B-1 guidelines. Be aware that if your wife does not have these qualifications she must enter as a B-2 visitor for pleasure and cannot perform any duties for the company.

The problem is that B-1 status is NOT a working visa. You are only permitted to enter in this capacity if:

• you are receiving no salary or other remuneration from a U.S. source;

• your principal place of business is outside the United States;

• the actual place of accrual of profits is outside the United States; and

• the work product is predominantly created outside the United States.

In your case, it sounds like the consulting work is being created in the United States. Your work product is consulting advice and it appears as though you are creating this work product while you are in the United States. If you were simply entering to gather information and returning to Canada to do your analysis and prepare a report regarding your recommendations, this would probably be okay.

You have been lucky so far. This does not mean that the problem will not surface in the future. If the work product is actually being produced in Canada, you can still claim B-1 status. If, however, this is not the case, you will have to apply for TN status as a management consultant every time you take on a new contract.