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MACKENZIE · L-1A FIELD GUIDE

Should the support letter omit limits shown in the company’s approval matrix?

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THE DIRECT ANSWER

No. The account should accurately explain actual authority and reserved decisions. Hiding material limits can make the letter inconsistent with the genuine organization.

Use the matrix to clarify the role

Explain what decisions the person makes and how operating work is performed. A truthful account of authority is more useful than a conclusory statement that the applicant controls everything.

An organization chart placing site coordinators and consultants under your direction, engagement letters with audit firms you select, policies bearing your approval but drafted by others, budget approvals, and correspondence in which staff take instruction from you. Board or committee minutes recording decisions the executive made, delegated authority schedules, approved budgets bearing their sign-off, hiring and compensation approvals for subordinate managers, and the division's reporting lines over time. Preserve the names of the entities that actually employed the person during each period, along with the documents explaining any merger, rebranding or ownership change, rather than restating the whole history under the company's current name. The Canadian side can use recent contracts, financial statements or tax filings; the new U.S. entity instead needs evidence such as incorporation records, sufficient secured premises, capitalization, a bank account and a credible operating plan showing its ability to commence business. The activity stack contains signed customer contracts, issued and settled invoices, payroll registers, equipment leases, operating authority and insurance certificates, and filed tax returns showing revenue.