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Hypothetical example: a Pontiac resident is opening a small U.S. auto-repair and tire shop on an E-2 visa. His wife is a secondary-school teacher who wants to keep teaching, their daughter is 20 and finishing college in Quebec, and their son is 15. The E-2 application covers him; the other three each face a different question, and the daughter's is urgent. This guide takes them one at a time, because the principal's visa does not settle three separate immigration positions with three separate deadlines.
The teacher: authorized to work, licensed by the state
As the spouse of an E-2 investor she is admitted in E-2 dependant status and, under current policy, is employment-authorized incident to that status once her admission record identifies her as a spouse. She may work for any employer or for herself, and nothing requires her job to relate to the shop. State authorities set licensing requirements for public-school teachers, and private-school requirements may differ; she must check the responsible agency for credential-review, examination or coursework requirements in the state where she intends to teach. Processing time varies, so she should begin before the move. Her authorization lasts as long as his E-2 status, so if the shop closes or the visa is not renewed, her work permission ends with it, and she should keep that dependency in mind when signing a teaching contract.
The 20-year-old: months to decide before derivative status closes
At 20 and unmarried the daughter qualifies as an E-2 dependant and may accompany the family and study in the United States, but she may not work, and on her twenty-first birthday she ceases to be a dependant regardless of where she is in her studies. If she is finishing a program in Quebec, the practical question is whether she needs U.S. status at all before then. If she does intend to move, the family should decide now whether she enters as an E-2 dependant and changes to F-1 student status before she turns 21, or applies for F-1 directly from Canada, with its own financial-support and full-time-enrolment conditions. A change of status filed too close to the birthday can be denied for lack of time to adjudicate. Nothing in E-2 gives her a path to permanent residence, so her long-term plan is her own.
The 15-year-old: simple now, planned for later
The son qualifies as an E-2 dependant with years to spare, may attend school in the United States without a student visa and may not work, including part-time jobs at his father's shop. His situation is simple today and becomes complicated only if the family's stay is long: E-2 status can be renewed indefinitely while the business qualifies, so a family that stays a decade will watch him reach 21 in E-2 dependant status with no derivative route left and no immigrant path from E-2 itself. If permanent residence is the family's real intention, that should be pursued through a category that provides it — EB-5, an employer petition or another route — early enough that he is still under 21, with Child Status Protection Act calculations, when the immigrant petition is filed. His Canadian citizenship remains his own regardless.
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.