Read the general life across the border overview
Hypothetical example: A North Frontenac investor is moving her family to New Hampshire. Her fourteen-year-old son from an earlier relationship is with her most of the time under a shared parenting arrangement, and his father lives in Kingston. Her partner of nine years is not her husband. Two facts nobody has raised in the immigration conversation will decide whether the household actually moves together: a court order about the child, and a marriage certificate that does not exist.
The partner who is not a spouse
Derivative status attaches to a legal spouse and to unmarried children under twenty-one. A long-standing common-law relationship, however it is treated for Ontario property, benefits and tax purposes, does not create a spouse for these classifications, and there is no separate partner category. That leaves the partner needing a status of his own, which for a visitor means limited stays and no work permission. Couples in this position generally either marry, which carries consequences well beyond immigration and deserves independent advice, or they conclude that the move does not work as planned. Discovering this late, after a business has been bought, is how a viable investment becomes a household crisis.
Moving a child when another parent has rights
Hypothetical example: the North Frontenac investor's parenting arrangement is silent about relocation. Immigration officers are not deciding custody, but a child's move to another country is a family-law question in Canada, and an order or written consent from the other parent is what protects the arrangement. Travel with the child may also raise questions at the border, where officers routinely ask about consent when one parent travels with a minor, so carrying a consent letter and a copy of any order is practical as well as prudent. The family-law step has its own timetable, through negotiation or a court, and it should start before closing dates are set rather than after.
The child's status, and the birthday after that
Assuming the move proceeds, the son accompanies as a dependent child: he may attend school and he may not work, including a summer job. His status ends when he turns twenty-one, which is seven years away and worth writing in the family calendar now, because the options at that point, a student status of his own or another classification, need lead time. If he returns to Ontario to finish school at some stage, his dependent status is not affected by absence in itself, but a child who effectively lives in Canada while holding American dependent status is a fact worth discussing with counsel. His father's access arrangements should be built into the plan, including who pays for travel, because that is the term that causes the most conflict later.
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.