A relocation checklist does not grant work authorization. TD is available to a qualifying spouse or unmarried child under 21, but TD itself does not authorize employment.
Check what the relocation provider actually handles
Housing and travel assistance may be complete while status questions remain unresolved. Identify any work the spouse expects to perform from the United States, including for a Canadian employer. A private service provider’s completed checklist does not turn that activity into permitted TD work.
TD carries no work authorization at any point, so a partner who intends to keep earning needs an independent status that permits it, and the relationship must be a legally recognized marriage because a common-law partner has no derivative eligibility at all. TD permits study but does not authorise work of any kind, and remote or unpaid activities require individual review, so a spouse cannot lawfully replace the lost income on TD status alone. The principal must independently show citizenship of Canada or Mexico, an occupation named by USMCA with its required credentials, and prearranged US employment rather than self-employment; Canadian permanent residence alone is insufficient.