TD does not authorize employment, although TD dependants may study. A convenient payroll arrangement cannot create the spouse’s permission.
Assess the spouse’s own role
Identify intended work and any independent lawful basis. A pending dependent case or unpaid activity is not an automatic exemption.
TD status does not authorise employment in the United States, and remote work performed from inside the country raises questions that depend on the specific facts. TD is a dependant status: the spouse and unmarried children under twenty-one may accompany the TN professional, enrol in school and remain for the same period, but the status carries no work authorization. If a spouse or family member is also being considered for a role at the same or a related company, treat that as its own case with its own facts, rather than assuming the principal applicant's TN approval extends any work permission to them. Employment is judged by where the person is physically performing the work, not by where the employer is registered, so a TD spouse logging in from a U.S. apartment is working in the United States without authorization. If the review concludes the arrangement is closer to independent contracting, the household's plans may need to shift toward a different route entirely, not just a delayed TN filing.