Dear Members
- If you are a Canadian musician who plans to perform paid musical work in the United States, you require a non-immigrant work permit, the most common of which is a Classification P2 Work Permit. Note that showcase performers may be eligible to apply for a B1 Business Class Visitor Visa instead, and P1, P3 and O visas are other types of permits musicians may fall under.
- The application process is quite complex, rather expensive and usually requires significant lead time; fortunately the AFM (aka our union!) provides consulting services to help musicians through the process, starting with a highly informative webpage, dedicated personnel in the Canadian Office and incredibly helpful MPM Secretary-Treasurer Kelly Komadowski.
- Petitioning for P2 Work Permits is a member-specific service processed by AFM’s Canadian Office on behalf of Canadian AFM members exclusively. (In other words, it is a built in member benefit!).
Happy travels!
President Finlay