Practice Areas
Options For International Companies To Transfer Employees to the US
L1A/L1B Intra-Company Transferees
Intra-Company Transferees are essential executives, managers, or employees with specialized knowledge. L1 visas permit foreign companies with branches or affiliated offices in the United States to transfer needed employees to the United States.
To qualify for an L1 visa, the foreign employer must demonstrate:
- the employee is an executive or managerial position who perform an "essential function of the business" (L1A visa) or
- is employed in a position that requires specialized knowledge about the company's product, service, research, equipment, management or advanced knowledge or expertise in the company's procedures and processes (L1B visa);
- the employee has been employed in the foreign office for at least one year during the three years prior to admission to the United States; and
- the employee will assume comparable duties in the United States with the same employer, an affiliate, or subsidiary of the same employer.
Duration of L1 Visa: The L1 visa will remain valid so long as the foreign company continues its operations abroad for the duration of the L1 visa. The L1A visa is valid for up to seven years and the L1B is valid for up to five years.
Work Authorization for Spouses: Spouses and unmarried children (under the age of 21) qualify for L2 visa status. Spouses with L2 visa status is eligible to apply for work authorization with USCIS.
L1 Visa Renewals: L-1 status may be renewed and extended within the United States. Note that renewing the visa in the United States does not automatically extend the physical visa in the passport. To obtain a visa renewal in the passport, you must make a visa appointment with the US Consulate overseas, bring the necessary visa documentation including the original visa renewal approval notice issued by USCIS, to obtain the visa renewal in your passport.
Change of Status to H1B: L1 visa holders may change status to an H1B visa however we caution that in some cases it may be best to maintain your L1 visa, especially if you have an L1A visa that is valid for 7 years and could lead to a multinational executive green card application. If you do decide to change your status from an L1 to an H1B, note that (1) the time already used on your L1 visa will be counted towards the maximum 6 year period authorized for an H1B visa and (2) you will be counted in the annual H1B visa quota unless your employer is an exempt employer.
Green Card Option Available for L1A Multinational Executive. The company should carefully consider whether to classify the employee as either an L1A or an L1B especially if the company, in the long-term, may sponsor the employee for permanent residence. Note that the L1A Multinational Executive of Manager may be eligible to apply for permanent residency based on his L1A visa. The L1B Specialized Knowledge Visa does not have an option for permanent residency based on his L1 visa status but can consider alternative employment based green card options.
Filing Process: The employer will submit Form I-129 (L1) to USCIS including supporting documents. This application can be expedited where USCIS will complete processing within approximately 14 business days at an additional cost of $1,000.00. The approved petition will be forwarded to the Consulate of employee's choice and the employee will schedule an appointment to obtain the visa stamp in his/her passport for entry into the United States. Upon entry, the employee may immediately apply for a social security number and begin working for the US Company. The spouse of the L1 visa holder may apply for an employment authorization card and obtain a social security number with the approved employment authorization card.
Multinational Executive or Manager
To qualify for permanent residence based on being a Multinational Executive and Manager, you must meet the following criteria:
- You must have been employed by an affiliate of the US employer overseas for at least one year out of the three years preceding your entry into the US;
- The US employer must have been in existence for at least one year; and
- You must be working for the US entity in a capacity that is managerial or executive.
Filing Process: You can concurrently file Form I-140 and Form I-485, Adjustment of Status, or you can decide to only file Form I-140 and proceed with Consular Processing. Should your concurrently file Form I-485, you can also apply for and receive work and travel authorization while the application is pending with USCIS.
Contact an Experienced US Immigration Attorney, Pittsburgh, PA.
Contact Pittsburgh Immigration Attorney Rami Lee for a free initial consultation. Our Pittsburgh Immigration Attorney has successfully filed hundred of PERM Labor Applications on behalf of computer engineers, scientists, systems administrators, restaurant workers, musicians, physicians, multinational executives, nurses, professors, etc. We understand how valuable your time is and therefore we offer early morning, late evening, and weekend appointments. We also offer in-home consultations and on-site business consultations.