Continued Canadian payroll does not automatically authorize the spouse’s work from the United States. Check the spouse’s actual status documents rather than using the location of payment as the test.
Reconcile the payroll account with the person performing services
Confirm whether the payroll record belongs to the principal or spouse and what work it pays for. The principal’s transfer package cannot establish the spouse’s permission simply because both people remain connected to the same Canadian company. A qualifying spouse in valid L status may work incident to that status with appropriate evidence; an EAD is not universally necessary. L dependent children, who must be unmarried and under 21, gain no such employment benefit. Keep the spouse’s own relationship and admission records with the planned work dates, and explain any discrepancy between the company’s payment assumptions and the actual status evidence.
If the principal's position is affected, the dependants' position may follow it, and the order of work matters: the principal's question is resolved first and household plans are made against the answer rather than in parallel with it.