L-1A/L-1B Visas
Have been employed for at least one continuous year out of the last three; and
Hold a managerial position (L-1A Visa), executive position (L1-A Visa), or have specialized knowledge of the company’s product or procedures (L-1B Visa) during said one continuous year period and intends to hold the same position while working in the United States office
Filing Procedure
Blanket Petitions
It engages in commercial trade or services;
Has an office in the United States doing business for one year or more;
Has three or more domestic and foreign branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates; and
It has obtained at least 10 L-1 approvals during the previous 12-month period; have US subsidiaries or affiliates with combined annual sales of at least $25 million; or have a US work force of at least 1,000 employees.
- Multinational companies or intending multinational companies wishing to send high-level or essential employees to aid or initiate business operations in the US must first file an I-129L to the Regional Service Center in the region where the transferee employee is to be employed in the United States.
- The company must maintain both a foreign office and a United States office.
- The transferee employee must:
Have been employed for at least one continuous year out of the last three; and
Hold a managerial position (L-1A Visa), executive position (L1-A Visa), or have specialized knowledge of the company’s product or procedures (L-1B Visa) during said one continuous year period and intends to hold the same position while working in the United States office
- The company must secure sufficient physical space for an office in the United States.
- L-1B applicants must show the company has the means to compensate the employee and commence work in the United States.
- Transferee employee entering the United States to establish a new office on an L-1A/L-1B Visa will be granted an initial stay of one year.
- After one year, upon proof the new office is active and operating (an active operating business which has transitioned out of its infancy stages) extensions may be granted in two year increments limited to a maximum stay of five years and seven years for L-1B and L1-A Visa holders respectively.
- After one year, L1-A Visa holders must prove they are exclusively working as a manager or executive in order to extend their visa (i.e., L1-A Visa holders are no longer working on non-managerial/executive tasks associated with initiating a new office)
- Transferee employees entering the United States and NOT establishing a new office will be granted an initial stay of three years and may be granted extensions in two year increments limited to a maximum stay of five years and seven years for L-1B and L1-A Visa holders respectively.
Filing Procedure
- Company must file an I-129L to the Regional Service Center in the region where the transferee employee is to be employed in the United States. The filing fee is $825. Processing time takes between two and four months depending on USCIS’s case load. There is no other way to speed up this process based on filing strategy other than to pay $1,000 fee for premium USCIS processing (USCIS guarantees it will review the petition within 15 days).
- Once approved, the transferee employee can apply for an L-1 visa at a U.S. Consulate or Embassy to enter the United States.
- Canadian citizens are exempt from the need to file I-129L with USCIS and wait for its approval. Instead, Canadian citizens may petition for L1 status at a port of entry on the United States/Canada border or at a United States pre-clearance/pre-flight station in Canada.
Blanket Petitions
- Companies may file blanket petitions for all employees if:
It engages in commercial trade or services;
Has an office in the United States doing business for one year or more;
Has three or more domestic and foreign branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates; and
It has obtained at least 10 L-1 approvals during the previous 12-month period; have US subsidiaries or affiliates with combined annual sales of at least $25 million; or have a US work force of at least 1,000 employees.