Start only when the person has an actual status or authorization permitting that work and the required evidence can be established. Lawful permanent residents generally are authorized to work; an application, fee or gift receipt is not the same status. Obtain guidance on the actual document and completed step rather than relying on the word approved in isolation.
Tie the start date to verified authorization
Coordinate the employer’s documentation requirements with the real immigration milestone. Do not assume either that an early receipt suffices or that every new permanent resident must wait an additional fixed period before working. Additional document, interview and visa-availability issues may affect when residence is obtained.
Keep relocation commitments flexible until the relevant status and travel documents are confirmed. Employers ask for a start date, and the temptation is to give one drawn from a portal. The date that can actually be defended comes from a status document in hand, and the record to show the employer is that document rather than a notice describing progress.
Where it does not yet exist, say so and give the milestone instead of a date. The legal position is unchanged by commercial pressure: lawful permanent residents generally are authorized to work, while an application, a fee receipt or a gift receipt is not that status, and no fixed additional waiting period should be invented after residence is obtained. Hypothetical example: a corporate reporting manager gives an employer a milestone rather than a date, and the offer is held open on that basis.