Read the general life across the border overview
Hypothetical example: a Conception Bay South household planning a move includes a twenty-three-year-old son who lives at home and a widowed parent the family supports. Neither of them is a derivative of a temporary worker. The dependent classifications recognise a legally married spouse and unmarried children under twenty-one, and that list does not expand to accommodate households that function differently. Both relatives would need an independent basis of their own, and one of them may have none.
The derivative definition is narrow and it does not stretch
Dependent classifications such as TD, L-2 and E-2 dependent status extend to a legally married spouse and to unmarried children under twenty-one. Parents are not derivatives of a temporary worker, and neither are adult children, siblings or other relatives, however genuine the dependence. This is a frequent and painful discovery because the household's own sense of who belongs to it has no bearing on the definition. Establish the position at the start of planning, using each person's actual age and legal relationship, rather than assuming that an application will accommodate the family as the family understands itself.
Each person outside the definition needs an independent basis
An adult child may have options of their own: a professional classification if their occupation is listed and they have an American employer, student status if they are enrolling in a programme, or another category on their own facts. A parent generally has no route tied to a temporary worker at all, and visitor status permits neither work nor indefinite residence. These are separate applications with separate requirements and separate timelines, and they should be assessed alongside the principal's rather than left until after the move. The answer is sometimes that a relative cannot come on the same timetable.
Watch the birthday that is coming, not the one that passed
Where a household includes a child approaching twenty-one, plan for the transition in advance. Dependent status ends on that birthday regardless of how much of an assignment remains, and the usual answer is student status arranged before rather than after. In the immigrant context the calculation differs, since the Child Status Protection Act allows certain periods to be subtracted from a child's age depending on processing and visa availability, but that is a computation to be done on real dates by someone competent. Put every family member's birth date on one page beside the expected filing and assignment dates.
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.