A spouse in TD status cannot work on that status. The principal’s offer, salary and TN preparation do not authorize the spouse’s employment.
Separate two employment decisions
List the spouse’s intended job and any independent authorization alongside the principal’s proposal. Eligible TD family members generally are a spouse and unmarried children under 21; children likewise receive no TD employment permission. Confirm each person’s nationality and actual visa or admission requirements rather than copying the principal’s process. A household budget can show prospective earnings as conditional without treating them as income already authorized.
Avoid locking in a moving date, school enrollment, or housing lease until the duty and credential questions are settled, since a rewritten offer letter or a licensing delay can add real time to the process. Dependants hold TD status, which authorizes residence and study but no employment of any kind, and working remotely from inside the United States for a Canadian employer is still work performed there. Separately confirm that the principal is a Canadian or Mexican citizen, has prearranged USMCA-listed professional work, satisfies the profession’s own credential requirement, and will not be self-employed in the United States.