- Dependent work rights vary significantly by country, ranging from automatic permissions to separate permit applications.
- The United Kingdom and Australia generally grant broad employment rights through the dependent visa itself.
- Canada and New Zealand require spouses to obtain separate work permits before they can legally begin employment.
A spouse moving with a skilled worker does not automatically gain permission to work in every country. Canada and New Zealand require separate work authorization, while an eligible UK dependant generally receives broad employment rights with the visa itself.
The distinction can alter whether a household earns one income or two after relocation. A dependent spouse may be allowed to work for any employer, limited to a particular occupation, or barred from employment entirely.
The United States applies the most category-specific rules. H-4 spouses generally need an Employment Authorization Document, while L-2S spouses can usually work incident to status.
Free toolCanada Express Entry Points CalculatorCanada takes a different approach. An eligible spouse must submit a separate work-permit application and wait for approval before starting employment.
The UK requires a separate dependant immigration application, but not a separate employer-sponsored work permit. Australia, Ireland and New Zealand each use their own permission systems.
The spouse’s own document controls. The principal worker’s visa alone is not enough proof of work authorization.
The six systems put the burden in different places
| Country | Work permission | Separate spouse process | Main restriction or risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Automatic only in certain categories | H-4 and several other spouses need separate authorization | Rights vary by visa classification |
| Canada | No automatic work rights | Separate open work permit required | Eligibility depends on occupation and permit validity |
| United Kingdom | Broad rights after eligible dependant permission | Separate dependant visa application | Not every Skilled Worker can bring dependants |
| Australia | Generally follows a secondary visa grant | Secondary or subsequent-entrant visa | VEVO conditions control |
| New Zealand | No automatic work rights | Partner of a Worker Work Visa required | Not every worker can support one |
| Ireland | Employment allowed after eligible Stamp 1G permission | Family reunification and registration | Self-employment is prohibited |
The terms “automatic” and “separate application” describe different things. A UK spouse applies separately for immigration permission, but work rights normally arrive as a condition of that permission. A Canadian spouse applies specifically for a work permit.
U.S. spouses must start with the principal worker’s classification
The United States has no single rule for spouses of temporary workers. H-4 status alone does not authorize employment.
An H-4 spouse may qualify for an Employment Authorization Document if the H-1B principal has an approved Form I-140 immigrant petition or qualifying H-1B extensions under the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-First Century Act. The spouse must file Form I-765 and wait for the EAD before beginning work.
An approved H-4 EAD generally permits work for different employers and is not tied to the H-1B sponsor. The spouse must track both the H-4 expiry shown on Form I-94 and the EAD expiry date.
L-2 spouses generally have broader rights. An L-2S spouse is usually authorized to work incident to status and does not need an EAD before starting a job. The L-2S Form I-94 can support employer verification with an acceptable identity document.
Other categories produce different results. Qualifying E-1, E-2 and E-3 spouses are generally authorized to work incident to status. J-2 spouses may apply for an EAD, while F-2, O-3 and TD spouses ordinarily cannot work based on those dependent statuses.
A loss of the principal worker’s H-1B or L-1 employment can trigger a discretionary grace period to find sponsorship, change status or leave. Both spouses should check their Forms I-94, any EAD expiry, pending petitions and continuing employment authorization.
Canada requires approval before the spouse starts work
Canada generally requires an eligible spouse or common-law partner to obtain a separate open work permit. Visitor or family-member admission does not authorize employment.
Since January 21, 2025, eligibility has narrowed for families outside qualifying permanent-residence pathways. The principal worker generally must hold a job in a TEER 0 management occupation, a TEER 1 professional occupation, or an approved TEER 2 or TEER 3 occupation connected to labor shortages or government priorities.
The principal applicant ordinarily must also have at least 16 months remaining on the work authorization when the spouse’s application arrives. Different rules apply to permanent-residence pathways, certain free-trade arrangements, designated programs and special initiatives.
The spouse may apply with the principal worker or later, but cannot normally begin work until the permit is approved. Once issued, the open permit generally allows work for different employers, jobs and locations, on either a full-time or part-time basis.
Medical or occupational conditions can narrow those rights. The permit may restrict healthcare, childcare, education or similar work if the required immigration medical examination was not completed.
The permit normally ends on the earliest of the principal worker’s permit expiry, the spouse’s passport expiry or the spouse’s biometric validity. A principal worker’s extension does not automatically extend the spouse’s permit.
Canada offers a separate protection after issuance. IRCC states that the permit normally remains valid until its printed expiry date if the principal loses the job, completes studies early, or the couple separates or divorces. The change can block a future extension based on the same relationship or principal applicant, but it does not ordinarily cancel the existing permit immediately.
UK dependants receive broad rights, but eligibility has tightened
An eligible spouse or partner of a Skilled Worker must apply separately for dependant permission. Once granted, that permission generally allows work for almost any employer, changing employers, voluntary work, study and self-employment.
There is one prominent employment restriction: the dependant cannot work as a professional sportsperson, including as a sports coach. No separate employer-sponsored work permit is required.
Eligibility is the gate. Newly sponsored care workers and senior care workers generally cannot bring partners unless a transitional or limited family exception applies. Transitional protection principally covers workers continuously sponsored in those roles since before March 11, 2024.
Similar limits affect many medium-skilled workers. Transitional protection generally requires continuous qualifying permission from before July 22, 2025.
A dependant’s permission normally ends on the same date as the principal applicant’s permission. The spouse must file a separate extension application. If sponsorship ends and the principal’s visa is cancelled or curtailed, the Home Office may curtail the dependant’s permission as well.
The dependant may receive limited time to switch to an independent work route, qualify under another category, become another eligible person’s dependant or leave the UK. The spouse’s job does not preserve dependant status independently.
Australia records the spouse’s conditions in VEVO
A spouse or de facto partner of a Skills in Demand subclass 482 holder normally receives a separate secondary visa. The spouse may join the original family application or apply later as a subsequent entrant.
Work may be permitted, but the visa grant letter and Visa Entitlement Verification Online record, known as VEVO, control the individual conditions. The spouse and employer should confirm permission to work, restrictions, the visa expiry date and any changes caused by a later application.
The primary subclass 482 worker generally remains subject to sponsorship and nominated-employment conditions. The spouse’s work rights are usually broader, but a secondary visa does not become independent because the spouse obtains a job.
The spouse can normally remain only while the secondary visa and the primary applicant’s visa remain valid. If the principal changes visas, the spouse generally must be included in or separately apply under the new arrangement.
A job loss does not necessarily cancel the family’s visas on the final working day. The principal may need new sponsorship, another visa or departure from Australia, while the spouse should continue checking VEVO.
New Zealand separates the partner’s work visa from the worker’s visa
New Zealand does not automatically authorize a spouse to work because the principal holds a work visa. The spouse must obtain a Partner of a Worker Work Visa and usually show that the couple lives together in a genuine and stable relationship.
The supporting partner must hold an eligible work visa. Eligibility also depends on the principal’s occupation, skill level and, in some cases, wage. Certain lower-skilled, seasonal and working-holiday workers, along with holders of other restricted visas, cannot support an open partner work visa.
A qualifying partner work visa normally allows employment without a job offer. From April 20, 2026, eligible open-work conditions allow work for an employer, work in different occupations and locations, sole trading, or owning and operating a business.
A business operator cannot directly or indirectly employ other people. If the principal cannot support a partner work visa, the spouse may receive only a Partner of a Worker Visitor Visa, which does not permit work.
The partner work visa normally lasts as long as the supporting worker’s visa. It does not extend because the spouse is employed. Cancellation, expiry, a move to an ineligible visa category or the end of the relationship can require a new immigration status.
Ireland permits employment through Stamp 1G, but not business operation
Ireland grants eligible spouses and partners Stamp 1G after family reunification approval. Qualifying groups include spouses or partners of Critical Skills Employment Permit holders, General Employment Permit holders, Intra-Corporate Transfer permit holders, certain non-consultant hospital doctors, researchers with Hosting Agreements and holders of certain other qualifying permissions.
Stamp 1G allows employment without a separate employment permit. The spouse may work for an employer, change employers, work full time and study.
The restriction is clear. Stamp 1G does not allow the holder to establish or operate a business or work on a self-employed basis. The permission normally requires annual renewal.
If an employment-permit holder is made redundant, the worker must notify the relevant department and generally has up to six months to secure another qualifying job and apply for a new permit. The spouse’s Stamp 1G does not necessarily disappear on the final day of employment, but renewal remains tied to qualifying family status and the principal’s permission.
Employers must verify the spouse’s own document
Employers should confirm identity, current authorization, expiry, employer or occupation limits, self-employment rules, regulated-work restrictions and whether a pending extension preserves work rights.
The relevant proof differs by country:
- In the United States, that may be an EAD, an L-2S or qualifying E-spouse Form I-94, or another valid Form I-9 document combination.
- In Canada, it is the valid open work permit and its printed conditions.
- In the UK, it is the online right-to-work check.
- In Australia, it is the VEVO record.
- In New Zealand, it is the eVisa and employment conditions.
- In Ireland, it is a current Irish Residence Permit showing Stamp 1G or another work-authorized stamp.
Before accepting an international assignment, couples should confirm whether the principal’s visa can support a spouse, whether approval must come before a job starts, whether occupation or wage rules apply, and whether self-employment is allowed.
They should also check the document’s expiry date, extension process, consequences of job loss, options for an independent visa and the effect of a relationship ending. The work rights of spouses on skilled-worker routes depend on the permission issued to the spouse, not merely the visa held by the worker.
