L-1A Visa Lawyer, Boston MA

Eligibility

A United States employer may obtain L-1 classification for a foreign worker, if the employer:

• Has a qualifying relationship with a foreign company (parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate); and
• Currently is, 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 foreign worker’s stay in the United States in L-1 status.

A foreign company that does not yet have an affiliated office in the United States may obtain L-1 classification for a foreign worker, if the employer:

• Has secured sufficient physical premises to house the new office; and
• Demonstrates that the intended office in the United States will support an executive or managerial position within one year of the approval of the petition.

To qualify for L-1 classification, the foreign worker must:

• Have been working for a qualifying organization abroad for one continuous year within the three years immediately preceding his or her admission to the United States; and
• Be seeking to enter the United States to provide service in an executive or managerial capacity for a branch of the same employer or one of its qualifying organizations.

What constitutes a qualifying organization is a complex subject. Contact Lally Immigration Services, LLC to inquire further.

Required Documents

L-1 visa petitions must include:

1. Existence of the qualifying relationship between the U.S. and foreign employer based on ownership and control;
2. That the foreign worker’s employment abroad for one year was in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge capacity; and
3. A description of the proposed job duties and qualifications; and
4. Evidence showing that the proposed employment is in an executive, managerial, or specialized knowledge capacity.

L-1 workers coming to the United States to open, or to be employed in, a new office in the United States, must submit additional documentation.

L-1 petitions may be rejected or denied for failure to submit required evidence or supporting documents. All required evidence should be submitted with the initial petition.

Petition Process

Employer files Form I-129 along with the following:

1. Existence of the qualifying relationship between the U.S. and foreign employer based on ownership and control;
2. That the foreign worker’s employment abroad for one year was in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge capacity; and
3. A description of the proposed job duties and qualifications; and
4. Evidence showing that the proposed employment is in an executive, managerial, or specialized knowledge capacity.

L-1 workers coming to the United States to open, or to be employed in, a new office in the United States, must submit additional documentation.

Costs

L-1 visa costs vary depending on size of the petitioning employer as well as the employer’s dependency on foreign workers.

L-1 visa costs may include:

1. $460 – Form I-129 Filing Fee;
2. $500 – Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee;
3. $4,500 – Pub. L. 114-113 Fee;
4. $2,500 – Form I-907 Premium Processing Filing Fee; and/or
5. $190 – Form DS-160, Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application Fee.

Processing Time

L-1 visas are processed at varying speeds depending on a variety of circumstances. Visit the USCIS Processing Times website for the most up-to-date information.

Premium Processing

Available. See USCIS website for details.

Validity Period

L-1 petitions may be approved for up to three years, unless it is a “new office,” in which case the initial stay is limited to one year.  

The maximum period of stay in the United States in L-1A status is seven years. The maximum period of stay in the United States in L-1B status is five years.

Time spent outside of the United States during the five-/seven-year period does not count toward the five-/seven-year maximum and can be added back/recaptured.

L-2 dependents are also subject to the five-/seven-year maximum in L-2 status.

Extensions

L-1 status may be extended in increments of up to an additional two years, until the employee has reached the maximum limit of five or seven years.

L-1 workers who remain in the United States longer than authorized may be barred from returning and/or may be removed (deported) from the United States.

Family Members

Spouses and children accompanying L-1 intracompany workers are eligible for admission in L-2 status.

L2 dependent spouses may apply for work authorization by filing a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, with fee. 

Requests for Evidence

L-1 requests for evidence (“RFE”) are becoming increasingly more common.

L-1 RFEs typically revolve around the following topics:

• Qualifying Relationship;
• Ownership and Control of the Foreign Employer;
• Ownership and Control of the U.S. Entity;
• “Doing Business”;
• Beneficiary Requirements;
• One-Year Employment Abroad;
• Managerial, Executive, or Specialized Knowledge Position Abroad;
• Foreign Position Primarily Managerial;
• Foreign Position Primarily Executive;
• Evidence of Specialized Knowledge Position in the United States;
• Off-Site Work with an Unaffiliated Employer; and/or
• Control and Supervision.

Last Reviewed/Updated: 05/21/2021