A proposed TD status does not authorize employment. The spouse needs a separate review of actual status and intended work.
Avoid using the principal’s timetable as permission
The Canadian notice period neither grants nor removes a spouse’s US work rights. Identify the activity and lawful basis before committing to a start.
If the self-employment question is unresolved, avoid finalizing dependent travel, schooling, or housing plans around this offer until the employment structure is confirmed as qualifying. Employment is judged by where the person is physically performing the work, not by where the employer is registered, so a TD spouse logging in from a U.S. apartment is working in the United States without authorization. TD permits study but does not authorize employment, and that includes remote or freelance work performed while in the United States, whether the client and payment sit in Canada or elsewhere. A child who turns 21 during the principal's assignment loses TD status on that birthday, regardless of where they are in a degree, and would need to qualify for a student classification or another category in their own right. A spouse who spends long stretches in Canada does not gain work permission in the US by holding TD, and remote or unpaid work is not automatically outside that limit; that question belongs with counsel.