L-1 Visa: Everything you need to know about the Intra-Company Transfer Visa

Welcome to one of the world’s leading immigration law firms for L1 visas; Cases completed in 2-3 weeks’ time, we can create your business plans as well. We are one of the under 1% of firms in the country that practice both immigration ‘and’ business law…we run 4 firms of our own, and we ‘get’ business. We have processed hundreds of these with one of the highest success records worldwide …not because we get immigration, but because we get business, and can explain your business model to an immigration officer in a way that makes sense.

The L-1 can lead to a Green Card in 2 years’ time and consequently, in our opinion it is the hardest visa case to win today;  The other great plus, is that you can be from any country and still qualify for the L-1, unlike the E2 visa, which requires you to be from a treaty country.

Call us now and in 5 minutes you will understand why your L1 team is in a whole different league.
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Are you a manager or executive of a foreign company looking to transfer to an affiliate, branch, or subsidiary office in the United States, or open a new office? The L1 visa (intracompany transferee)  may be for you.
The L1  visa is the best choice if you are limited to an E or L visa (i.e. if you don’t want to invest half a million or more into the EB5 Green Card program.  The catch is that you must have run an operation in a foreign country for a year and intend to keep on running it. For some people this may not be an option. If this is not possible, an E-2 treaty investor visa and may be the better choice. Feel free to give us a call if you’re unsure which visa to pursue. On the other hand, the L-1 visa is wonderful for nationals from countries that do not have a treaty (of navigation, friendship, and commerce) with us and therefore do not qualify for an E2.
The L-1 intracompany transferee visa is one of the hardest to win, if not the hardest, because it leads to a Green Card very easily compared to the other methods.  It only takes about a year after you get your L1 visa to get a Green Card; others wait 6-8 years with a job offer, have to place ads to show they are the most qualifies, and more. But Our law firm has been handling L-1 visas for 27 years and we are fully equipped to handle your case. We are a business law firm as well as an immigration firm, so we understand the difficulties you may be facing.
The L-1 intracompany transferee visa allows upper-level management employees, as well as owners who direct the company (executives)  to open a new office or location for their company in the United States, or transfer to an already existing location. The office or location in the United States can be a branch, subsidiary, or affiliate. “Affiliate” means the new location needs a commonality of ownership with the original office. As long as you own 51% of the company abroad and the company in the US, you may qualify as an affiliate.

Essentially, you could own a software consulting firm in Montreal or a Italian  restaurant in London, open something else such as a franchise in the US, and the two of them may be completely unrelated. As long as you owned both businesses, you would qualify for the L-1 intracompany transferee visa.

Initially, the L-1 intracompany transferee visa is only valid for three years, or only one if you are establishing or working in a new office that has been in business less than one year. However, the visa may be renewed in three-year increments with a maximum level of seven years total.

L-1 intracompany transferee visas offer a nice perk: they may be used as a jumping point to a Green Card. After one year of living and working in the United States with an L-1 intracompany transferee visa, you are allowed to apply for an Employment Based (EB) Green Card.

To outline things in simpler terms, the main benefits of the L-1 Intracompany Transferee visa are:

1. You can enter this country with a very small investment. Compare this to the EB5, which requires a bare minimum of $500,000 and you must hire 10 employees for a period of two years.
2. It can lead to a Green Card, unlike the E-2 treaty investor visa.
3. The category of Green Card the L-1 visa leads to is the highest level, known as EB1, and the position does not have to be advertised (as in a process called Labor Certification).

The L-1 intracompany transferee visa is a very versatile visa and can be obtained in a month’s time with Premium Processing, a process by which you pay an extra $1000 for a rapid reply from the immigration department, Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS). We have won cases with investments of as low as $50,000 but we recommend that you invest at least $100,000 in the new or existing business to be safe.
Many people ask us whether an L-1 intracompany transferee visa places restrictions on the work your spouse would be allowed to do if he or she accompanied you to the United States. There are no restrictions! Your spouse would be able to obtain authorization to work in any field, whether or not the work is related to the company you have invested in.

Eligibility Requirements for L-1 Visa

If your business is looking to open a new branch in the United States or transfer an upper-level manager or executive to an already existing branch, the L-1 intracompany transferee visa may be the visa for you. The L-1 visa is one of our favorite visas. Not only does it require a smaller investment than most visas, such as the E-2, but it also allows you to apply for a Green Card after one year of serving as an international executive or manager in the US.

Of course, certain requirements must be met in order to be eligible to apply for an L-1 intracompany transferee visa. Let’s go through the requirements one by one:

1. The Foreign entity and the U.S. entity must have a qualifying relationship and both entities must be currently doing business.

Qualifying organizations include a parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate.

The definition of qualifying organizations are further defined as:

Parent: Any business entity which has subsidiaries is a parent. However, a subsidiary may own other subsidiaries and also be a parent, even though it has an ultimate parent.

Branch: An office or operating division of the same employer which is merely housed in a different location and is not established as a separate business entity is considered a branch.

Subsidiaries: There are only three situations that constitute a subsidiary relationship for L1 purposes:

1. Where a parent directly or indirectly owns more than half of the entity and has control;
2. Where a parent directly or indirectly owns 50% of a 50-50 joint venture and has equal control and veto power. The 50-50 joint venture can be owned and controlled by only two legal entities. All other combinations of a joint venture are not qualifying as a subsidiary;
3. Where a parent directly or indirectly owns less than half of the entity, but has control because the other stock is widely dispersed among minor shareholders. This can happen, for example, when an individual or company acquires sufficient shares of a publicly-held company to be able to nominate and elect the board of directors.

Affiliate: Subsidiaries are affiliates of each other. The affiliate relationship is established by:

• One of two subsidiaries both of which are owned and controlled by the same parent or individual, or
• One of two legal entities owned and controlled by the same group of individuals, each individual owning and controlling approximately the same share or proportion of each entity, or
• In the case of a partnership that is organized in the United States to provide accounting services along with managerial and/or consulting services and that markets its accounting services under an internationally recognized name under an agreement with a worldwide coordinating organization that is owned and controlled by the member accounting firms, a partnership (or similar organization) that is organized outside the United States to provide accounting services shall be considered to be an affiliate of the United States partnership if it markets its accounting services under the same internationally recognized name under the agreement with the worldwide coordinating organization of which the United States partnership is also a member.

While the organizations must be related through ownership and/or control, they are not required to be the same type of company. For example, you could open a software consulting firm in New York and own a pub in London. As long as you possess ownership of both companies and satisfy the other requirements, you would be eligible for an L-1 intracompany transferee visa.

Another important note: both the foreign entity and the US entity must continue to do business throughout the duration of L1 status in the US. Doing business means the regular, systematic, and continuous provision of goods and/or services and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office.

2. You must have been employed in the foreign company as a manager or executive for at least one full year out of the previous three years.

Before moving to the United States, you must have been working in a foreign country for the company for at least one continuous year out of the previous three years prior to submitting the L-1 intracompany transferee visa. While it is best to have worked full-time, you don’t need to have been working full time, but on a regular basis for more than part-time. If you’ve been working part time for several affiliated companies, you may be able to combine the part-time work to meet the one-year requirement.

We understand this requirement is not possible for everyone to meet. If not, an E-2 Treaty Investor visa may be the better choice of visa for you. 

3. You must be working as an executive or manager for the company.

You must have been an executive or high-level manager of the company abroad and be entering to serve as an executive or manager for the US company. As an alternative, you may have been a worker with specialized knowledge (L1B Visa). You do not have to be transferring into the exact same position you held while abroad, but you must continue to work in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge position. USCIS is very strict with regards to the definition of executive or manager.

Establishment of executive capacity as defined at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(l)(1)(ii)(C):

Executive capacity means an assignment within an organization in which the employee primarily:

• Directs the management of the organization or a major component or function of the organization;
• Establishes the goals and policies of the organization, component, or function;
• Exercises wide latitude in discretionary decision-making; and
• Receives only general supervision or direction from higher level executives, the board of directors, or stockholders of the organization.

An executive refers to someone who oversees the managerial positions in a company, often the brains or direction of the enterprise.

A Manager as defined at 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(l)(ii)(B):

• Manages the organization, or a department, subdivision, function, or component of the organization;
• Supervises and controls the work of other supervisory, professional, or managerial employees, or manages an essential function within the organization, or a department or subdivision of the organization;
• Has the authority to hire and fire or recommend those as well as other personnel actions (such as promotion and leave authorization) if another employee or other employees are directly supervised; if no other employee is directly supervised, functions at a senior level within the organizational hierarchy or with respect to the function managed; and
• Exercises discretion over the day-to-day operations of the activity or function for which the employee has authority. A first-line supervisor is not considered to be acting in a managerial capacity merely by virtue of the supervisor’s supervisory duties unless the employees supervised are professional.

A high-level manager refers to someone who manages an entire department or firm, supervising other professionals, supervisors, or managers in the company. This person should have the power to hire and fire personnel.

For a functional manager, the function must be a clearly defined activity, be critical or essential (meaning necessary, core, or a fundamental activity) to the foreign company and the manager must primarily manage the function rather than performing day to day duties of the function. Then the qualifications of manager must be met.

There are two types of specialized knowledge applicable: 1. an employee who has a complex understanding of the way the company operates, or 2. an employee who has specialized knowledge about the company’s product/service(s), research/equipment, or methods and how they work in international markets.

Important Note: A manager or executive of a company will be able to remain in the United States up to 7 years. A person with specialized knowledge will be limited to a total of 5 years and also be unable to obtain an EB1 or EP1 Green Card.

4. A sufficient amount of physical space must be secured for the office or location in the U.S.

A home office generally does not count as an office space under the conditions of the L-1 intracompany transferee visa. The new or existing branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office must have secured sufficient physical premises to house the new office and the intended US office will support an executive or managerial position within one year.

5. If you are opening a new office, it must be actively operating and supporting an executive or manager position within 1 year of the L-1 visa request.

If you are an executive or upper-level manager opening a new branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office within the United States, you have one year in order to get your new business up and running. After one year, the L-1 intracompany transferee visa may be renewed if you can prove that your office is active and operating and requires the services of an executive or manager. This may include hiring on additional employees, producing a strong stream of revenue, or fulfilling contract orders.

A few other additional requirements for L-1 intracompany transferee visa eligibility:

• You must intend to depart from the United States once your L-1 intracompany transferee visa expires. (However, you do have the option to apply for a Green Card to stay in the country once you’ve held the L-1 visa for at least one year.)
• You, the employee, must be qualified for your company position through past education or business experience.

 

L-1 Visa Frequently Asked Questions

 

 

The L-1 intracompany transferee visa allows you, as an executive or high-level manager who has worked for a foreign company for at least one year, to establish or transfer to a subsidiary, branch, or affiliate office in the United States. Please note: The L-1A is for executives and managers; this page does not deal with the L-1B is for persons with specialized knowledge  (that visa lasts a maximum of 5 years and does not lead to a Green Card).  The L-1 intracompany transferee visa allows you to stay in the United States, initially, for three years, or for only one if you are establishing or working in a new branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office. However, the visa may be renewed in three-year increments with a maximum of seven allowable years total. If you are an employee applying for the visa with specialized knowledge, you are only allowed five years total in the U.S. But the L-1A intracompany transferee visa offers a nice perk — it may serve as the starting point for a Green Card. See the Green Card section below for more information.

In order to apply for the L-1 intracompany transferee visa, you must be an executive or high-level manager of a company that is either opening a new branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office in the United States, or transferring to an already existing office or location. You may be a citizen of any foreign country. You must have worked for the company outside of the U.S. for a full year prior to applying for the visa.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does the L1 visa require me to invest a million dollars?

No. The L1 visa is one of a trio of options for the foreign investor, the other two being the E2 visa and the EB5 Green Card.

2. Is it better than the E2 visa?

It is different. I would consider it the brother of the E2 however. The requirements for both are very similar. The difference between the 2 is that the L1 has the requirement that you worked for the parent company for one year before applying; the E2 does not have that requirement. The L1 allows you to apply for a Green Card, whereas the E2 is meant to never have you apply for the Green Card, although there is one interesting exception (however you need to own a second company in another country).

3. In order to apply for the L1 visa do I need to have worked for the foreign company?

Yes. In the past three years you must have worked for one year with the parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary of the US company that is filing the case for you (also called the petitioning company).  Watch our video for a full

4. Can the L1 visa company be a non-profit?

Yes. It can be a religious company, a profit or a nonprofit firm.

5. Can the L1 company abroad be a shelf or silent company?

Absolutely not. It must be fully active, and your position with that company must be an active one as well.

6. Do I have to work for the US company full-time for an L1 visa?

First of all, as with all visas, there is a temporary requirement. Even though you can apply for a Green Card after you had your L1 visa for a year, you are not meant to enter the US in order to remain permanently (watch our video for a full explanation of this). Second, although you do not have to work full-time for this company in the US, in order to qualify for an L-1 visa, you need to spend a “significant portion of time”; otherwise, there is no need for you in the United States, if you understand the concept we are explaining. In order to win the case we need to show the company requires your services.

If you are coming to the US as an executive or manager (L1-A), then you must continue in that role; if you enter as a person with specialized knowledge (L-1B), the L1 requires that you continue in that capacity.

7. Can I still apply for a Green Card if I am in the US on an L1 visa?

Yes you can. In fact, if you enter on an L1A, you can apply for a Green Card in as little as one year from when you enter on the L1A. The L1 is  what is called a dual intent visa, meaning you can remain in the United States on an L1 visa while ‘simultaneously’ applying for a Green Card; in fact, the beneficiary of the L1 does not have to keep a residence in their foreign country.

Do any other laws or regulations control the L1 visa?

Yes. At this time, Executive Order 13788, Buy American and Hire American, that took effect April 18th of 2017, will affect the case. When deciding the L1 visa cases, the officer has to consider the spirit of the Executive Order, which is to create higher wages and employment rates for U.S. workers.

8. Can I have been working one year for the company inside the US in order to qualify for the L1 visa?

Good question; no, this requirement has to be satisfied by working outside of the country. There are some exceptions with respect to some of the time in the U.S. but they are very technical.

9. What if I was in the U.S. on a different visa like the H1b for several years; do I now lose out because it exceeded the 3-year requirement of working abroad?

No, if you stay was permissible it will not interrupt it. The key to this one is that the companies must have had the qualifying relationship at the time, one cannot, for example, purchase or acquire the other at this time, it has to be before the fact, not after.

10. What if I own the parent company and want to apply for the L1 visa, can I do it?

Yes. Your own company is allowed to petition for you; you do not have to work for a large multinational. However, if your own company is petitioning (ie sponsoring) you, then you must demonstrate that your time in the US will be temporary and you will return when your job is done.

11. If I have an L1B visa, can I be outsourced to other companies?

Yes, but you have to meet a number of strict requirements.

12. What should be the form of the petitioning (sponsoring) company for an L1 visa?

The organization can be an (a):  “organization, corporation, company, partnership, association, trust, foundation or fund; and includes a group of persons, whether or not incorporated, permanently or temporarily associated together with joint action on any subject or subjects.”

13. Does the parent company have to own the affiliate, subsidiary or branch 100% for an L1 visa?

No, a simple majority will do.

14. What if I want an L1 visa but I am going to work for the US operation but will still be an employee of the home country company and paid from there?

That will not work. For an L1 visa the work of the employee and the control of the employee must be U.S. based.

15. What if the U.S. company for which I will work on my L1 visa is a new operation?

In that case, you will have to send photographs of the physical premises, as well as other documentary proof such as the lease.

16. Can I get an L1 visa so that it allows me to be self-employed in the U.S., so I can then close the foreign operation when I arrive?

That will not work. The L1 visa is not at all meant to create self-employment, especially given the Executive Order mentioned above. Also, the foreign entity must be in full operation while the U.S. worker is in the U.S. on an L1 visa.

17. If I am in the U.S. on an L1B visa, do I need to leave the U.S. to apply for a Green Card.

Not necessarily, but you will not be able to avoid the Labor Certification process as the L1A do under the Green Card category EB1. This takes substantially longer and will affect you in a number of ways.

18. What is a person with Specialized Knowledge for the purposes of an L1B visa?

The law states: (B) For purposes of section 1101(a)(15)(L) of this title, an alien is considered to be serving in a capacity involving specialized knowledge with respect to a company if the alien has a special knowledge of the company product and its application in international markets or has an advanced level of knowledge of processes and procedures of the company.

 

 

L-1 Blanket Visa Information & Eligibility Criteria

If you own, manage, or work for a big company (usually a large multinational corporation) seeking to transfer multiple employees to the United States, the L-1 blanket visa allows you to submit one “blanket” (single) petition instead of submitting L-1 intracompany transferee visas separately for each employee.

Basically, the L-1 blanket visa makes your life easier. It reduces the processing time for the company because the employer does not need to prove eligibility every time by filing individual petitions. Each employee will have to prove his or her own eligibility at the U.S. consulate abroad, and the USCIS will not have to deal with the individual cases.

The L-1 blanket visa may be used for both L-1A intracompany transferee visas (for managerial and executive positions) and L-1B intracompany transferee visas (for professional employees with specialized knowledge)

What are the L-1 Blanket Visa Requirements?

The requirements a company applying for the L-1 blanket visa must meet in order to be eligible for the visa:

1. The company must already be doing business in the United States. The company must have an office or location in the U.S. that has been in business for one year.
2. The company must be engaged in commercial trade or services.
3. The company must have three or more domestic or foreign branches, subsidiaries, or affiliates.
4. The company must meet one of the following requirements: 
   • The company must have at least 1,000 employees.
   • The company must have annual U.S. sales of at least $25 million.
   • The company must have had at least 10 individual L visa applications approved in the last twelve months.
5. All employees that will be transferred must meet the requirements for an L-1 intracompany transferee visa. These requirements include: 
   • The employee must be an executive or upper-level manager for the company, or else an employee with specialized knowledge in the company.
   • The employee must have been working abroad for a branch, subsidiary, or affiliate of the company for at least one year prior to the submittal of the l-1 blanket visa application.
   • The employee must be moving to a branch, subsidiary, or affiliate office or location in the United States.

 

How Long is the L-1 Blanket Visa Valid?

The L-1 blanket visa is valid for three years after approval. An indefinite number of extensions is allowed by the company. However, if the company doesn’t apply for an extension or if an application for renewal is denied, the petitioner must wait three years to apply for a new blanket petition.

Once the L-1 blanket visa is approved, it does not guarantee that an employee will be granted L-1A visa status. But it does provide a flexible, fast way for the employer to transfer employees to the United States.