L-1 visa

To qualify for L-1 classification in this category, the employer must:

Have a qualifying relationship with a foreign company (parent company, branch, subsidiary or affiliate, collectively referred to as qualifying organizations) and currently be, or will be, doing business as an employer in the United States and in at least one other country directly or through a qualifying organization for the duration of the beneficiary’s stay in the United States as an L-1. While the business must be viable, there is no requirement that it be engaged in international trade.

“Doing business” means the regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods and/or services by a qualifying organization and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office of the qualifying organization in the United States and abroad.

For foreign employers seeking to send an employee to the United States as an executive or manager to establish a new office, the employer must also show that:

The employer has secured sufficient physical premises to house the new office;

The employee has been employed as an executive or manager for one continuous year in the three years preceding the filing of the petition; and

The intended U.S. office will support an executive or managerial position within one year of the approval of the petition.

Qualified employees entering the United States to establish a new office will be allowed a maximum initial stay of one year. All other qualified employees will be allowed a maximum initial stay of three years. For all L-1A employees, requests for extension of stay may be granted in increments of up to an additional two years, until the employee has reached the maximum limit of seven years.

The transferring employee may be accompanied or followed by their spouse and any unmarried children who are under 21 years of age. Spouses and children may seek admission in the L-2 nonimmigrant classification and, if approved, generally will be granted the same period of stay as the employee.

If these family members are already in the United States and seeking changes of status to or extension of stay in L-2 classification, they may apply collectively, with fee, on the Form I-539, Application to Change/Extend Nonimmigrant Status.