TD does not authorize employment, including services performed in the United States for a foreign employer. A shared professional plan does not create an exception.
Assess the actual work basis for each person
Eligible TD dependents include a qualifying spouse and unmarried child under 21. If a spouse intends to perform project work, identify an independently appropriate basis rather than treating dependent status as team authorization.
Households in this position should also consider whether a second adult holds qualifications supporting an independent route, which would give the family a second basis rather than a single point of failure. Gather marriage and birth records, passports, and prior immigration documents, and avoid making the principal's employment letter carry facts that belong in a dependent's record. A principal TN applicant must be a Canadian or Mexican citizen with prearranged work in a listed USMCA profession and the profession-specific qualification; Canadian permanent residence is a different status and does not create TN eligibility. Households should therefore plan the response in advance: what the family would do if a contract were cancelled, whether a child mid-school-year would remain, and whether anyone in the household has an independent basis for staying.