A right to use business equipment does not itself establish US work permission.
Check the activity and family member’s status
Qualifying E spouses may work incident to appropriate status with required evidence; children do not receive those spouse rights. The commercial lease and the immigration authorization must not be treated as the same approval.
Determine what the spouse proposes to do and when US status would begin. A qualifying E spouse is generally employment-authorized incident to status with suitable evidence, but a pending E-2 application, equipment lease, or ownership agreement does not itself permit work. Dependent children in E status lack the incident-to-status employment benefit available to qualifying spouses. For the principal, independently document treaty nationality, substantial lawful capital irrevocably committed and at risk, a genuine non-marginal operation, and development and direction through 50 percent ownership or operational control. If either spouse is only a Canadian permanent resident, remember that permanent residence and citizenship are distinct facts when assessing treaty nationality.
Hypothetical example: A cabinetmaker near Saint-David-de-Falardeau is buying a woodworking studio, and her husband wants to test a leased CNC router before their E classifications are issued. Running sample orders and adjusting production settings would be productive activity, not merely inspecting an asset. They should defer that work until his own status supports it, while she documents the lease, committed purchase funds, Canadian citizenship, controlling interest, and credible operating plan.