IN THIS GUIDE · A lodge manager whose American title covers two businesses, only one of which is hotel management
Start with the TN eligibility and application overview
The second branch of the Hotel Manager entry is narrower than it looks
The listed entry is satisfied either by a baccalaureate degree in hotel or restaurant management, or by a post-secondary diploma or certificate in that same field combined with three years of experience in hotel or restaurant management. Both halves of the second branch are specific. A diploma in business administration or in tourism marketing is not a diploma in hotel or restaurant management, and years spent supervising a retail operation or a catering company are not years in hotel or restaurant management. Imelda's file is comfortable on both counts, and the comfort comes from the field of the credential and the field of the work matching the entry rather than from the length of her service. Anybody relying on this branch should read the wording of the entry itself before assuming an adjacent qualification will serve.
One offer letter, two businesses, and the officer reads the duties
The resort has combined property management with running a shop and an events-rental operation, which is ordinary commercial sense and also an immigration problem. Admission depends on the position consisting of work within the listed profession, so a role in which lodging management occupies a minority of the week invites the conclusion that the applicant was admitted to do something else. The remedy belongs to the employer rather than to whoever drafts the letter. It can describe a hotel management position that happens to include ancillary retail inside the properties, if that is the truth, or it can concede that what it wants is a general operations executive and consider whether any other basis exists. What it should not do is retitle the same duties and hope nobody reads the description closely.
Citizenship is the fact that lets her cross without a visa
Canadian citizens seeking TN admission ordinarily present themselves at a port of entry or a preclearance facility with the supporting documents in hand, and no visa is issued in advance; alternatively the American employer files Form I-129 and the approval is presented on arrival. Mexican citizens, equally eligible under the agreement, generally go through the visa process instead. What matters for Imelda is that her passport shows Canadian citizenship, since permanent residence in Canada, however long-standing, does not reach this category. Admission is granted for a period not exceeding three years, tied to the employment described, and further periods are possible while the same conditions hold. Dependants admitted in TD status may live in the country and study there, but they are not authorized to work.
Two arrangements that would end the application whatever her credential says
Self-employment in the United States falls outside the category. Were the resort to propose engaging Imelda's Nova Scotia company as a contractor while it finishes a renovation, with her invoicing for management services, the arrangement would fail however well her diploma matches the entry. She needs an American employer, or a U.S. entity under contract with her, that controls the work she performs. The second arrangement is equity. Small hospitality groups often offer a share of a property to the person who will run it, and any ownership interest she takes has to be disclosed and examined, because a large enough stake makes the relationship look less like employment and more like running her own business. Both points are far better settled while the offer is still being negotiated.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.