United States of America
TN USMCA Professionals (Canada & Mexico): total cost to complete
By Sam Parks · Last checked:
A source-linked budget for a Canadian or Mexican TN professional: USMCA profession and employer-letter gates, the Canadian CBP land-border baseline, Mexican TN/TD MRV costs, I-129 extension/change-of-status alternatives, premium processing, credential-evaluation exposure, and TD family scaling.
What does the TN USMCA Professionals (Canada & Mexico) actually cost?
Mandatory non-refundable costs are US$80. Refundable proof-of-funds requirements are tracked separately at none tracked, because that money is shown or blocked rather than normally lost.
Verified against USCIS - TN USMCA Professionals on 1 July 2026.
US petition cost controls
US H-1B, O-1 and TN petition cost, payer and stage evidence
The cost page answers one route. This cross-route layer keeps payer, stage, optional premium processing and eligibility gates visible before comparing US petition costs.
Employer-side versus applicant-side costs
USCIS petition filing, employer wage attestations and applicant consular fees do not have the same payer. Keep the payer visible before quoting any H-1B, O-1 or TN total.
Optional premium processing is not baseline
Premium processing can speed eligible I-129 adjudication, but it is optional and excluded from the baseline unless the filing strategy actually uses Form I-907.
Wage, evidence and intent gates are not fees
H-1B prevailing wage, O-1 evidence and petitioner requirements, and TN USMCA profession or temporary-intent gates are approval conditions, not money paid away to the government.
Stale USCIS fee trap
Re-check USCIS G-1055, H/L fee guidance, I-907 premium processing, State MRV, CBP and DOL sources before reuse. H-1B proclamation exposure and wage-weighted selection are conditional policy lines, not baseline fees.
| Route | Baseline and fee example | Payer and filing stage | Eligibility or evidence gate | Optional or conditional lines | Source date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H-1B - H-1B Specialty OccupationCost modelGovernment fee page | Cost model: US$3,595Fee worked example: US$3,595 (Initial H-1B, standard employer (>25 FTE, not H-1B-dependent), no premium). | Registration, DOL LCA, employer Form I-129 petition, then change of status or consular stamping.Core petition filing is employer-side in the model; the DS-160/MRV line is beneficiary-side only when a visa stamp is needed abroad. | Prevailing-wage salary evidence (DOL LCA): US$62,000-US$150,000 | Premium Processing (Form I-907): US$2,965Consular: DS-160 / consular MRV visa fee: US$205.Conditional: Foreign degree evaluation: US$0-US$250; Certified translations: US$0-US$200; Public Law 114-113 fee (large H-1B-dependent employer): US$4,000. | 1 July 2026USCIS — Fee Schedule (Form G-1055) |
| O-1 - O-1 Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or AchievementCost modelGovernment fee page | Cost model: US$1,655-US$2,155Fee worked example: US$1,655 (Single initial O-1, standard employer, no premium). | US employer or agent Form I-129 petition with evidence, consultation where required, then consular stamping if abroad.The USCIS petition is filed by the employer or agent; consular MRV and some evidence-service costs can sit with the beneficiary depending on the engagement. | O-1 evidence-threshold gate: US$0; US employer or agent petitioner gate: US$0; Peer-group or labor consultation/advisory opinion: US$0-US$500 | Premium Processing (Form I-907): US$2,965Consular: DS-160 / consular MRV visa fee: US$205; Visa appointment, courier, photos and local travel: US$0-US$300; O-3 dependant consular MRV visa fee: US$205.Conditional: Attorney or petition-preparation fees: US$2,500-US$8,000; Evidence package: letters, press, archive and translations: US$0-US$1,000; Credential evaluation where useful: US$0-US$250. | 1 July 2026USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| TN - TN USMCA Professionals (Canada & Mexico)Cost modelGovernment fee page | Cost model: US$80Fee worked example: US$80 (Canadian citizen, port-of-entry filing). | Canadian CBP admission, Mexican consular visa, or employer Form I-129 change/extension path.Canadian border and Mexican consular paths are applicant-facing; employer I-129 filing is a separate optional path for changes, extensions or pre-approval. | USMCA profession eligibility gate: US$0; Prearranged U.S. employer support-letter gate: US$0; Temporary-entry / nonimmigrant-intent gate: US$0 | Premium Processing (Form I-907): US$2,965Consular: Temporary-entry / nonimmigrant-intent gate: US$0; Mexican TN/TD consular MRV visa fee: US$185; Consular appointment, courier, photos and local travel: US$0-US$300.Conditional: Foreign credential evaluation where required: US$0-US$250; Consular appointment, courier, photos and local travel: US$0-US$300; Form I-129 E/TN filing fee (paper, standard employer): US$1,015. | 1 July 2026USCIS / CBP / State Department TN fee sources |
Publisher-ready citation snippet
Visa Atlas separates US employment-petition cost answers by payer and stage: H-1B combines registration, LCA wage evidence and employer I-129 fees; O-1 combines petitioner, evidence and advisory-opinion gates; TN splits Canadian CBP, Mexican consular and employer I-129 alternatives.
- Tech worker route comparison
- H-1B visa guide
- H-1B cost-to-complete model
- H-1B government fee page
- O-1 visa guide
- O-1 cost-to-complete model
- O-1 government fee page
- TN visa guide
- TN government fee page
- Cost-to-complete JSON
- Fees JSON
- Visa JSON
- How our US petition cost figures compare
Latest source record in this cluster: 1 July 2026. This cluster supports retrieval and review, not ranking, traffic, AI-citation or market-share outcome claims.
What it actually costs
A source-linked budget for a Canadian or Mexican TN professional: USMCA profession and employer-letter gates, the Canadian CBP land-border baseline, Mexican TN/TD MRV costs, I-129 extension/change-of-status alternatives, premium processing, credential-evaluation exposure, and TD family scaling.
Money you don't get back
US$80-US$80
Mandatory fees, services and one month of insurance.
| Cost line | Amount | Type | When / who |
|---|---|---|---|
| USMCA profession eligibility gate | US$0 | Service | No separate fee, but the offered role must fit a profession in Appendix 2 to Annex 16-A of Chapter 16 of the USMCA and the applicant must hold the required credentials. USCIS - TN USMCA Professionals |
| Prearranged U.S. employer support-letter gate | US$0 | Service | TN is for prearranged professional activity for a U.S. employer or entity. The employer letter must describe the profession, duties, stay length, qualifications and remuneration. 8 CFR 214.6 |
| Temporary-entry / nonimmigrant-intent gate | US$0 | Service | No separate fee, but TN admission requires temporary entry without intent to establish permanent residence; weak nonimmigrant-intent evidence can block CBP or consular approval. 8 CFR 214.6 |
| TN processing / inspection fee at CBP | US$50 | Gov fee | Canadian-citizen direct admission baseline. 8 CFR 214.6 points Canadian TN admission to the prescribed fee, and 8 CFR 103.7(d)(11) lists the professional-business-activity request at USD 50. 8 CFR 103.7(d)(11) |
| CBP Form I-94 land-border fee | US$30 | Gov fee | Canadian land-border baseline. HR-1 added USD 24 to the existing USD 6 land-border I-94 fee, bringing the current total to USD 30; air/pre-clearance collection can differ. Federal Register - CBP Immigration Fees Required by HR-1 |
| Foreign credential evaluation where required(optional)· indicative | US$0-US$250 | Service | Conditional: 8 CFR 214.6 requires a reliable credentials evaluation when the degree was issued outside Canada, Mexico or the United States. 8 CFR 214.6 |
| Mexican TN/TD consular MRV visa fee(optional) | US$185 | Gov fee | Conditional: Mexican TN applicants must obtain a TN visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate before applying for admission. Department of State lists TN/TD under the USD 185 non-petition-based NIV fee. U.S. Department of State - Fees for Visa Services |
| Consular appointment, courier, photos and local travel(optional)· indicative | US$0-US$300 | Service | Country-specific cash-flow exposure for Mexican consular cases or non-Canadian TD dependants: appointment-provider charges, courier service, compliant photos and travel to the post. Country-specific U.S. visa appointment provider - verify locally |
| Form I-129 E/TN filing fee (paper, standard employer)(optional) | US$1,015 | Gov fee | Conditional: employer-filed change of status, extension, or pre-approval path instead of direct CBP/consular processing. USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| Form I-129 E/TN filing fee (online, standard employer)(optional) | US$965 | Gov fee | Conditional online filing rate where Form I-129 online filing is available for the TN case. USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| Asylum Program Fee (standard employer, if I-129 filed)(optional) | US$600 | Gov fee | Conditional standard-employer Asylum Program Fee for Form I-129 filings. Small employers pay a reduced amount and nonprofits pay USD 0. USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| Premium Processing (Form I-907)(optional) | US$2,965 | Gov fee | Optional faster USCIS adjudicative action for eligible I-129 TN petitions; excluded from the Canadian border baseline. USCIS - Premium processing |
| Attorney or TN package-preparation fees(optional)· indicative | US$500-US$2,500 | Service | Common professional-service range for occupation mapping, employer-letter drafting, credential review and CBP/consular packet assembly. Not a government fee and not legally required in every case. Indicative immigration counsel range - verify engagement quote |
| TD dependant Form I-539 filing fee (paper)(optional) | US$470per dependant | Gov fee | Optional family-scaling line for TD dependants changing or extending status inside the United States by paper Form I-539. USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| TD dependant Form I-539 filing fee (online)(optional) | US$420per dependant | Gov fee | Optional family-scaling line where online Form I-539 filing is available for the TD dependant case. USCIS - Form G-1055 fee schedule |
| TD dependant consular MRV visa fee(optional) | US$185per dependant | Gov fee | Optional family-scaling line for TD dependants who need a TD visa stamp abroad. U.S. Department of State - Fees for Visa Services |
Baseline sunk cost is the Canadian-citizen land-border TN path: USD 50 TN professional request fee plus USD 30 Form I-94 land-border fee, with zero-dollar USMCA profession, employer-letter and temporary-entry gates included because they are hard approval requirements. Mexican consular MRV, I-129 change/extension, premium processing, attorney, credential-evaluation and TD dependant lines are excluded from the baseline unless the actual filing uses that path. Last checked 1 July 2026.
Cite or reuse this dataset
This cost model is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite Visa Atlas for the compiled sunk/refundable split and cite each linked authority or provider source for the underlying line item.
Suggested citation
Visa Atlas, "TN USMCA Professionals (Canada & Mexico) cost-to-complete model", https://visaatlas.org/cost-to-complete/us-tn. Last verified 1 July 2026.
- JSON endpoint
- https://visaatlas.org/api/public/cost-to-complete
FAQs
What does the TN USMCA Professionals (Canada & Mexico) actually cost to complete?
Mandatory non-refundable costs are US$80 in the current model. Separately, refundable proof-of-funds requirements are none tracked. The line table explains each item and source.
Is proof of funds a sunk cost?
No. Proof of funds is money you must show, hold or block. It can still be a cash-flow barrier, but it is different from application fees, document costs and insurance payments that you do not normally get back.
Why are some lines marked indicative?
Some third-party costs vary by country, provider and document count. Those lines use a range and are marked indicative so they are not confused with a single government tariff.