Do Cardiovascular Technologists Qualify for TN Visa Status?

When evaluating whether a position falls under one of the TN occupational categories, in addition to the Occupational Outlook Handbook and O*Net Online, I frequently turn to the Occupational Classification System Manual, used by Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) field economists to classify occupations for purposes of collecting compensation data.

The OCS classifies occupations into nine Major Occupation Groups (“MOGs”), which are in turn divided into several sub-MOGs. Major Occupational Group (MOG) “A”, for Professional And Technical Occupations, includes many of the occupations that qualify for TN visa status.

My first stop in the OCS is the Census Occupation Index Listings where I search for the particular occupation. Cardiovascular Technologists fall under the Professional And Technical Occupations MOG, and within the sub-MOG for Health Technologists And Technicians. This sub-MOG includes:

A203 Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians

A204 Dental Hygienists

A205 Health Record Technologists and Technicians

A206 Radiologic Technicians

A207 Licensed Practical Nurses

A208 Health Technologists and Technicians, N.E.C. ("Not Elsewhere Classified").

Cardiovascular Technologists fall under the A208 Health Technologists and Technicians, N.E.C. category, which is defined as:

Exclude Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians (A203), Health Record Technologists and Technicians (A205), and Radiologic Technicians (A206). Persons concerned primarily with performing technological functions in the fields of medicine, dentistry, environmental, or public health. The necessary knowledge is usually, at the minimum, acquired through study at a technical institute, junior college, or equivalent on-the-job training or experience. Include such occupations as E.K.G. Technician, Health Sanitarians, EMTs, etc.

The only occupations available for a TN visa classification under the Health Technologists and Technicians sub-MOG include Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians. As provided in the above definition, Cardiovascular Technologists are specifically excluded from this occupation.

Based on the OCS manual, there is little support for the argument that Cardiovascular Technologists fall within one of the TN visa occupational categories.

References:

Occupations / Job TitleBrian D. Zuccaro, Esq.Medical Technologist