That question deserves a direct answer from counsel rather than a hope that the derivative route holds. Depending on the child's studies, work, and circumstances, an independent path may be worth investigating alongside the family petition. Explore it early: a parallel option built at leisure is more useful than one attempted after the derivative claim fails.
Give the child their own file and their own adviser time
Book a session where the child's circumstances are the agenda, not a footnote to the investor's petition. Cover their education timeline, any employment, marriage plans, and current visa history, since marriage alone ends derivative eligibility for an unmarried child under twenty-one. Record which decisions belong to the child rather than the parents.
If a parallel route is worth pursuing, set its own milestones so it does not stall whenever the investment file gets busy. Book a session where the child's circumstances are the agenda rather than a footnote to the investor's petition, and cover their education timeline, any employment, marriage plans, and current visa history. Marriage alone ends derivative eligibility for an unmarried child under twenty-one, which makes it a fact worth discussing openly rather than assuming.
Record which decisions belong to the child rather than to the parents, since a young adult with their own plans is a participant and not a line item. Where a parallel route is worth pursuing, set its own milestones so it does not stall whenever the investment file becomes busy, and ask counsel for a direct answer rather than a hope.