Do not infer immigration roles solely from joint business ownership. Review each person’s proposed work, eligibility and the household’s options; one may potentially seek dependent status while another qualifies as principal. The chosen approach must still accurately describe who develops and directs the enterprise and what each person may lawfully do.
Separate a marital relationship from corporate authority
Document the actual share and voting arrangements even when the owners are married. A family relationship does not make contradictory governance provisions disappear. Review the spouse’s own status and applicable proof of work authorization before relying on their labor. No ownership arrangement or marriage certificate alone authorizes either person to perform U.S. work.
A qualifying E spouse is generally employment-authorized incident to valid status, so admission and the evidence of classification should be secured before productive services begin. The principal must possess treaty nationality, place lawful funds irrevocably at risk in a substantial investment, and develop and direct a qualifying treaty-owned enterprise by holding half of it or exercising operational control. Derivative status for an unmarried child ends at 21, the treaty-investor category offers no direct path to permanent residence that would carry the family through, and a student status has its own admission and funding requirements that take months to arrange.