Do not assume you can begin the proposed regulated activities while the licence is pending. Confirm what the relevant authority permits and whether the actual duties are covered by effective immigration authorization. A pending application, supervisor’s assurance or employer deadline does not by itself answer either question.
Coordinate the two readiness decisions
Ask the employer to identify which duties it expects on day one and whether they require the outstanding permission. If it proposes a temporary alternative, review that role rather than treating it as automatically covered by the original TN plan. Track regulatory review, any examination or certification and the immigration process on separate timelines.
This overview cannot promise a completion date or authorize an interim arrangement. Begin only when the required permissions for the work you will actually perform have been confirmed. Coordinate two readiness decisions rather than assuming one follows the other.
The immigration process determines when the person may be present and employed; the licensing process determines when they may perform the regulated activity. Map both timelines and identify the gap. Then decide with the employer what happens within it: whether a lawful non-regulated role exists, whether the start should be deferred, or whether the person begins and the scope of work is limited.
Any of those may be workable, and the one to avoid is arriving without having decided. Where the employer proposes that the person start and simply be careful, ask for the specifics in writing, since a vague accommodation tends to erode under operational pressure and the professional consequences fall on the individual.