Read the general life across the border overview
Permission to study does not automatically include permission to work. TD children and L-2 dependent children may study but may not accept employment through those classifications. Review a child’s actual status and proposed activity before assuming that school enrolment, age or a small number of working hours creates authorization.
Separate the two activities
Describe the school plans and any proposed paid work as distinct questions. A school’s admission decision does not determine immigration employment permission. Record who offered the work, what duties are involved and when it would begin so that the actual proposal can be assessed rather than dismissed as merely a minor after-school activity.
Check the child’s category
Identify the child’s own admission or status record and the principal route supporting it. TD and L-2 child classifications do not provide employment permission. Do not apply the work rules for qualifying L-2 spouses to a child simply because the records belong to the same family or share a related category label.
Review transitions before relying on them
If the child’s goals change or a different status is being considered, obtain an individual review before work begins. An application or school plan should not be treated as completed authorization. Keep the household’s education decisions connected to the child’s current record and any age-related questions requiring timely professional advice.
Establish the child's own status before anything else
Questions about what a young person may do are answered by reference to the status they actually hold, not by reference to the parent's classification or to what other families appear to do. Retrieve the child's own admission record and confirm what it shows and until when. Dependent categories generally permit study, and generally do not carry work authorization, but the details depend on the specific classification and should be confirmed for the child's own status rather than assumed from a general description. Where the family is unclear on what the child holds, that is the first thing to establish, since every other question in this area depends on it.
Plan for the transitions before they arrive
A young person's position changes at predictable moments, and those moments arrive whether or not anyone has prepared for them. Mark the dates: the twenty-first birthday, the end of a school stage, the point at which a course of study would begin or end, and the expiry of the current status. Then take advice on each well in advance, since the options available before a threshold is crossed are generally wider than those available afterwards. Where a change of status is being contemplated, establish what it would require, how long it would take and what the person may and may not do while it is pending. Avoid arrangements that assume a transition will be straightforward, particularly where employment or enrolment has already been agreed.
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.