Examine the spouse’s actual activities and authorization before relying on a committee title. A qualifying L spouse can work incident to valid dependent status, with appropriate spouse-specific I-94 evidence.
Distinguish an invitation from an authorized role
Clarify whether the spouse would provide services, receive compensation or simply attend an event; a label does not resolve those facts. Unmarried children under 21 may qualify as L dependants, but their status does not include the qualifying spouse’s employment authorization. Expense reimbursement, covered travel, meals or lodging tied to attending meetings, is generally a different question from compensation for services, and conflating the two can make a genuinely honorary role look like paid work on paper.
Ask specifically how the organization structures any payments or reimbursements and keep that documentation on file regardless of how the role is ultimately assessed. Confirm separately whether the committee's own sponsoring organization has any connection to the principal's business, since that relationship, if any, can matter independently of what the spouse actually does on the committee. Request meeting minutes or a role description in writing as the record develops, rather than relying on the original invitation alone months later.
Confirm the spouse's own status is currently valid before accepting any invitation at all, since accepting itself is worth pausing on rather than treating it as automatically low-risk. Keep a short written note of who extended the invitation and in what capacity, since that context is easy to remember today and easy to forget months later.