Before, if the subsidiary already trades and the petition claims a three-year period, because the file must show others doing the operating work. For a new office, secure premises first, file with a hiring plan and complete the hires within the first year before the extension.
The staffing sequence depends on whether the office is new
If the U.S. subsidiary is already selling and has at least the beginnings of a staff, the petition should be filed once the operating roles are covered, because an adjudicator evaluating a three-year request will ask who performs the technical and clerical work on the day the manager arrives. Hiring a technician and an administrator before filing, even part-time, changes the picture from working supervisor to manager.
If the subsidiary is a registration without trade, the case is a new-office petition: the company must secure physical premises first, show it has the financial ability to start operations and pay the manager, file with a credible one-year plan, and then execute the hires inside that year so the extension petition can show a managerial position surrounded by staff. In both cases the one-year employment requirement is already satisfied by four years on the Canadian payroll. The manager's move, her husband's licensing timeline and the children's schooling should be scheduled after the approval notice rather than after the filing.