Read the general life across the border overview
Hypothetical example: two people in Shefford have lived together for nine years without marrying, which is an ordinary arrangement in Quebec and is treated as a conjugal relationship for many Canadian purposes. U.S. dependent categories are built around a legal spouse and unmarried children under twenty-one. A long common-law relationship, however settled, does not by itself produce a derivative status, and a household planning a move needs that answered before anything else is booked. Hypothetical example: a legally married couple plans a move with one nineteen-year-old child who wants to begin university and another adult child who expects to work. The decision is person-specific: identify the principal’s category, the spouse’s derivative basis, each child’s age, and each person's study or work plan. A single household plan can hide a child who needs an independent route.
Establish each person’s own basis to be there
The first step is to stop treating the household as a unit and ask what each adult would hold. If the partner has no derivative status available, the questions become whether they have an independent basis of their own — their own employment category, their own studies — and what they may lawfully do in the meantime. The answers differ sharply between categories: an L-2 or E-2 dependent spouse is employment-authorized incident to status, while a TD dependant may study but may not work. None of those provisions reaches a partner who is not a spouse, so the analysis has to start from that fact rather than work around it. Write each adult’s proposed status beside their intended activity. The first review reveals whether a spouse’s work authorization follows from the relevant derivative status or whether an independent filing is necessary. It also prevents a household from signing an employment contract that cannot be performed after arrival.
Handle children on their own facts
Children are assessed separately from the adults’ relationship. Unmarried children under twenty-one may generally hold dependent status, and turning twenty-one ends that eligibility, which is a hard date rather than a guideline. Where children have a legal relationship to only one of the two adults, that relationship is the one that matters for a derivative filing. Where a process is long, the age question should be calculated against the relevant dates at the start rather than assumed to be comfortable. Dependent status permits study; it does not authorize employment, so a nineteen-year-old expecting to take a job needs a separate answer. For each child, record date of birth, relationship records, school timing and any intended employment. The decision is whether dependency will remain available through the relevant milestone or whether study and work plans require another strategy. Preserve the civil records that prove the relationship rather than relying on family explanations alone.
Decide what to change, and take advice before changing it
Couples in this position sometimes conclude that marrying resolves the immigration question, and it may, but it is a legal decision with consequences in property, tax, succession and family law in both countries. It should be made with advice rather than as a filing tactic, and the timing should be considered honestly, since a marriage arranged close to a filing invites questions of its own. The alternative is to plan around two independent statuses, which is workable but requires each person to have a genuine basis. Write down what each adult and each child will hold, and check the plan against dates before committing to it. If marriage, a name change, or a separate status is being considered, seek appropriate legal advice before changing the family’s legal arrangements. Immigration timing can matter, but it should not be the only reason for a life decision. A candid chronology of the relationship and planned travel is more useful than documents adjusted to fit a deadline.
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.