Do not present unconfirmed or unauthorized family work as existing support. A qualifying L spouse’s work benefit depends on valid status and appropriate evidence.
Keep the staffing facts and family permission separate
Eligible dependents include a spouse and unmarried children under 21; children receive no spousal work benefit. The proposed role must be explained using the genuine operating arrangement.
Spouses of L-1 transferees are admitted in L-2 status and, under current USCIS policy, are considered employment-authorized incident to that status, with the admission record itself serving as evidence of authorization for a period. The spouse should still confirm which document a U.S. employer will accept as proof, since employers verify work eligibility from specific records and an admission stamp annotated for a spouse is what USCIS currently treats as evidence. Some American employers and payroll systems are unfamiliar with employment authorization that arises incident to status, so the spouse should expect to explain the basis and may still want the document that makes verification easy. Where an assignment is expected to run toward the outer limit, generally seven years for L-1A, the household is planning around a temporary status, and decisions such as buying property or a spouse leaving a Canadian position deserve their own advice.