Read the general life across the border overview
The person supplying money, the person applying as principal and the relatives intending to accompany may differ. Identify each role accurately before calculating household costs or assuming work permission.
Name each person’s intended immigration role
Hypothetical example: relatives help finance an enterprise while only one household member plans to operate it. Funding participation does not automatically make each contributor a principal applicant or qualifying dependent. Record citizenship, relationships, ages and intended activities.
Assess the actual dependent status
TD does not authorize employment, including remote work performed while physically in the United States. Qualifying E and L spouses may be employment-authorized incident to status with appropriate evidence; an EAD is not universally required. Children do not receive work permission solely as dependents. TD, E and L dependents may study while maintaining applicable status, but study does not extend it. These dependent categories generally cover the spouse and unmarried children under 21; a qualifying relationship and maintained status must be established for each person.
Check immigrant family eligibility separately
Eligible EB-5 derivatives are not additional investors merely because they accompany. Any immigrant child-age protection requires individual dates and visa availability, not an assumed freeze from filing. Gold Card’s official terms call for intended eligible joining family members in the initial application with their own amounts.
Respect the order of immigrant entry
For an immigrant-visa family, the principal applicant must enter before or together with derivative family members. A preferred staggered move should be planned around that rule and each person’s actual documentation, not treated as an unrestricted choice of arrival order.
What else is on your mind?
Is a matching job title enough for TN?Can years of experience replace a degree for TN?Can my own U.S. company employ me under TN?Can my spouse work if I hold TN status?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.