An L1 visa facilitates the transfer of professionals working for a company in a foreign country to the same company in the United States. These visa holders are known as intracompany transferees since, unlike other work visas, they already work for the company they plan on joining in the US.
Full Answer
What is an L1 visa?
The L1 Visa is a non-immigrant visa which allows foreign companies to transfer a manager, executive, or person with specialized knowledge to a US company. The US company must be a branch office, parent, subsidiary, or affiliate of the foreign company.
Who is the beneficiary of an L1b visa?
If the employee will work as a person with specialized knowledge, the visa is specifically called an L1B visa. The L1 visa is not a eligible for self-petition. The US company must file the petition on the employees behalf. Therefore, the US company is considered the petitioner, and the L1 visa recipient, is considered the beneficiary.
How long can you work on an L1 visa?
With an L1 visa, you are authorized to live in the United States and to work for your L1 employer. ii. Extended Period of Stay The L1A visa for managers and executives is initially valid for a period of 3 years and can be extended for a total of 7 years.
What is the difference between L1a and L1b?
For both L1A and L1B visas, the employee must have worked for the company for at least 12 months in the last 36 months. The L1 visa is valid for three years, and one can extend the same for seven years. The L1B visa can be extended for five years.
What is an L1 visa?
The L1 visa is a dual-intent visa, meaning that you may have the intent to temporarily remain in the United States while simultaneously having the intent to possibly immigrate to the United States and become a lawful permanent resident in the future. iv. No Set Wage Requirements.
Where to apply for L1 visa?
If you are not doing a Change of Status, then you will likely be applying for your L1 visa at the Consulate of your home country.
How long is a L1A visa valid?
The L1A visa for managers and executives is initially valid for a period of 3 years and can be extended for a total of 7 years.
How many hours a week do you have to work to get an L1?
The entire year of qualifying employment should be satisfied by the time the L1 application is filed. The employment must be full-time (at least 35 hours a week). There is 1 exception to the full-time requirement in certain circumstances where the L1 beneficiary worked for multiple affiliated companies. iii.
What do you need to work for a foreign company to get an L1 visa?
To qualify for an L1 visa, you must have worked for the foreign company in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge capacity.
How long do you have to be employed in the US to file a L1?
The employee coming to work in the US must have been continuously employed full-time by the foreign company for at least 1 year within the last 3 years before filing the L1 petition. The employment with the foreign company must have been in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge capacity.
How many L1 visas can you get?
There is no annual limit to the number of L1 visas that can be issued.
What is L1 visa?
The L1 visa refers to the transferring of someone from a foreign country to the United States who works in an exclusive, managerial, or specialized field for employment purposes. With this visa, the foreign employee is being transferred from one office to another office in the United States with the same employer, but a different branch or affiliate of the company that employed them.
How Easy Is It To Get An L1 Visa?
The whole point of the L1 visa is to permit foreign employees of a United States company to be transferred from their original branch to the branch in the United States. To begin, the employee has to file the L1 application. The worker is not able to do this. The application is submitted to the USCIS and reviewed by this entity. There are instances when the USCIS will grant blanket L1 visas. This means that the company will have a set number of blank visas that can be distributed to employees who will be transferred to the United States to work. Keep in mind that every visa application takes a certain amount of energy and time and that applies to the L1 visa. There will be plenty of legal documents to review, forms to fill out, and additional paperwork to read. All of this will need to be done within the six months and 45 days before the request start date. Even though all of this paperwork and the entire application process itself could take you several months, working with an attorney who specializes specifically in immigration could help you significantly cut down on time and effort. For L1 visa petitions, there is a premium process available. This means that a fee is paid by your employer (set at $1,225) and the case will be adjudicated by the government in less than 15 days. And what this means is that the USCIS will generally approve the petition in that 15 day period.
How long does an L1 visa last?
In most cases, the L1A visa is granted for a period of three years. If the employee is going to stay in the United States for the job longer, the visa can be extended up to two years at a time for a maximum of seven years total.
What is an I-797 Notice of Action?
Once form I-129 is filed, I-797 Notice of Action is the document that shows that the petition for a visa has been approved. This does not, however, guarantee an issued visa.
How to get a new visa?
To get a new visa issued, they will need to go to a consulate and speak to a consular officer in person. Going through this process is often very difficult because once the visa holder leaves the United States, they have to go to a different country to get their visa renewed.
What are the different types of temporary visas?
Several different temporary work visas can be used to do this including H1B, L1, L1A, and L1B. Although the H1B and L1 visas have some similarities, they also have unique qualities.
How long does it take to get an L1 visa?
This means that a fee is paid by your employer (set at $1,225) and the case will be adjudicated by the government in less than 15 days. And what this means is that the USCIS will generally approve the petition in that 15 day period.
What is the L1 form?
An L1 petition is filed on USCIS Form I-129, along with the Form I-129L supplement. Your L1 petition documents must include: Documentation verifying the corporate relationship between the U.S. company and the foreign company (usually a letter from the corporate secretary, and the Articles of Incorporation of both the foreign and the U.S. company)
How long is a L1A visa good for?
Employees in Managerial and Executive positions (L1A visa) may be admitted initially for a three-year period if they intend to join an existing company or a one-year period if they intend to join a newly established company. After initial entry, extensions are granted in two-year increments for a maximum period of seven years.
How to file an L1 petition?
An L1 petition is filed on USCIS Form I-129, along with the Form I-129L supplement. Your L1 petition documents must include: 1 Documentation verifying the corporate relationship between the U.S. company and the foreign company (usually a letter from the corporate secretary, and the Articles of Incorporation of both the foreign and the U.S. company) 2 Documentation verifying capitalization structure of the company (e.g. records of stock or equity ownership) 3 Detailed job description and requirements for the position – In case of a specialized knowledge position, detailed description of your unique knowledge to be used by the U.S. company 4 Documentation proving that you have worked in the foreign company for a continuous period of over one year in the preceding three years in an executive or managerial capacity, or were employed in a position involving specialized knowledge, and that you are coming to the U.S. to work in an executive, managerial, or a specialized knowledge position 5 If you are coming to the U.S. to setup a new office, submit evidence of establishment of new office (e.g. lease for office space, sales contracts, etc.) 6 Annual report of both foreign and the U.S. company, and/or other reports showing the type of business and financial stability 7 Organizational chart indicating your position in the U.S. company as well as the foreign company 8 Copies of applicable business permits/licenses and registrations
Can a 21 year old get an L2 visa?
Spouses and/or children under the age of 21 who wish to accompany or join you in the U.S. for the duration of your stay can apply for L2 visas. Spouses are eligible to take up employment after obtaining an employment authorization document.
How many L-1 visas are approved each year?
On the other hand, there are no limits to how many L-1 visas are approved each year. This means that your petition will not be rejected due to the fact that there are no more available visas.
How long does it take to get an extension for an L-1 visa?
However, unfortunately, L-1 holders are only granted one extension after their initial three years. After that, they must either transfer their status or apply for a new L-1 visa.
How many employees can you have on an L-1?
revenue of at least $25 million or have a minimum of 1,000 employees working in the U.S. An L-1 blanket petition allows employers to file a single petition for multiple employees, ...
How long do you have to work for a multinational company?
If you are not currently employed with a multinational company that is large enough to have or plant an office in the U.S., then this could be a very difficult hurdle to surpass. This is especially true since you must work at that company for one full year in the three years that precede your entry into the U.S.
How long can you work on an L-1A?
Even though the L-1A allows for holders to work for up to seven years, this limit cannot be exceeded for any reason. For other visas, such as the H-1B or J-1, an extension can be acquired past the usual maximum. There are even some visas like the O-1 and E-2 that allow for unlimited extensions.
What is the most difficult part of obtaining an H-1B visa?
One of the most difficult aspects of acquiring an H-1B, J-1, or TN visa is finding an entity that is willing to sponsor you for the visa. If you are a qualified L-1 applicant, then you are already employed with a U.S. company that will sponsor you.
Is L-1 visa easy to obtain?
Even though the L-1 can be relatively easy to obtain, those same advantages can be considered disadvantages if you are not already employed.
How long do you have to be employed overseas to get an L1 visa?
To apply for an L1 visa, you must demonstrate that: You have been employed overseas by the transferring organization for at least one year within the past three years and you will be performing duties in the U.S. for the same employer or an affiliate.
What is an intra-company transferee visa?
The L1 intra-company transferee visa is available to employees of international companies who are being transferred to a parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary in the U.S.
What is a qualifying relationship between a US company and a foreign company?
Both the foreign company and the U.S company must remain open, active and viable for the entire duration of your employment in the U.S. Failure to maintain required levels of operation results in the loss of L1 status.
Can a spouse of a L1 visa accept employment?
Spouses of L1 visa holders may accept employment in the U.S. by obtaining an Employment Authorization Document.
What is an L-1 visa?
An L-1 visa is an employment-based visa that allows organizations to transfer their professional employees from any of their overseas branches to those in the United States. A qualified employee will be eligible to live and work in the U.S. under that nonimmigrant status by filling out and filing an L-1 visa application.
How long do you have to be an employee to get a L-1 visa?
Have been an employee of the same organization in one of its offices abroad for a minimum of one continuous year within the three years immediately preceding your L-1 visa application.
How Can I Transfer From L1 Status to Permanent Resident Status?
resident. To enjoy this L-1 visa benefit, you will need to apply for a green card.
What is the classification of L-1A?
The L-1A classification allows an organization to transfer a qualified employee with a managerial or executive role from one of its affiliated foreign branches to the United States. The employee may come to the U.S. to either continue working for an existing location or to establish a new office in the United States.
What to do after completing DS-160?
After completing your DS-160, you must print and keep the application form confirmation page, which you will later bring along to your interview. You will also need to schedule a visa interview appointment. Also, you will need to upload your photo as part of the DS-160 filing requirements.
What is an I-907 form?
An I-907 form if you are using premium processing. Your employer must also demonstrate the ability to pay your wages. If the I-129 petition is approved, USCIS will send an I-797 Notice of Action to your employer. You will use the form as part of the documents to apply for a visa abroad.
How to get a green card if you are an L-1A?
If you are an L-1A employee, the easiest route for your green card application is to file an EB-1C petition. The requirements are quite similar to your current L-1A status. Transferring from an L-1A to an EB-1C is faster than most other nonimmigrant to immigrant process because your application does not require PERM Labor Certification, which may take an extra 8 months to process. However, keep in mind that the EB-1C requires that you must have worked as a manager or executive for your company’s overseas location for one continuous year in the three years leading up to your green card application.
How long can an L1 visa be used?
L1 visa holders entering the US 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.
Why do L2 visa holders need an EAD?
This is because all US employers are required by law to verify that any person whom they employ is authorised to accept work in the US.
What is the application process for an EAD?
Spouses of L1 employees may apply for permission to work by filing a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, with US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), together with the relevant fee of $410.
What is the EAD application filing location?
The filing location for Form I-765 is determined by the relevant eligibility category, namely “spouse of an L-1 intracompany transferee” or category “ (a) (18)”. For category a (18) the location to send the application will be either the USCIS Phoenix or Dallas Lockbox, based on where the L2 spouse is living.
How much does a L2 spouse have to pay for biometrics?
The L2 spouse may also have to pay a biometric services fee of $85, although in some cases s/he may be eligible for a fee waiver from both this and the filing fee, for example, where they are currently experiencing financial hardship that prevents them from paying the fee (s).
What form do I use to change my L1 status?
If the L1’s family members are already in the United States and seeking a change of status to, or extension of stay in, the L2 classification, they may apply using Form I-539, Application to Change/Extend Nonimmigrant Status.
Can an L1 employee be accompanied by their spouse?
An L2 visa allows an L1 employee to be accompanied by his or her spouse, as well as any unmarried children under the age of 21. Such family members may seek admission in the L2 nonimmigrant classification and, if approved, generally will be granted the same period of stay as the L1 intra-company transferee.
What is L1 Visa ?
An L1 visa is one of the most commonly procured visas by individuals who wish to work in the United States of America, under the L-1 category . L-1 is a non-immigrant visa and can be used for a short period of time, i.e., from three months for Iranian nationals, to a period of five years for citizens from India and Japan. This visa is based on a schedule of non-reciprocity and the maximum period for which an individual can stay in the States under this visa, is seven years.
What are the requirements for a L1 visa?
The basic requirements include: The U.S company (branch, subsidiary, etc.) petitioning for the visa, must have a qualifying relationship with the parent company. ...
What is blanket L-1 visa?
Blanket L-1 visa is provided to those candidates that meet specific criteria. The USCIS would have already decided the company’s eligibility hence the applicant will only have to provide a copy of the blanket petition that has been approved along with necessary documents.
How many subcategories are there for L-1 visas?
There are two subcategories of L-1 visa and these are:
How long do you have to work overseas to qualify for the US unemployment benefits?
The employee should have worked overseas for a company for a minimum period of one continuous year within 3 years prior to his/her admission to the States. Employee must have been in the managerial or executive position in order to qualify.
How long do you have to work overseas to be eligible for a US visa?
The employee must have worked overseas for a company for a minimum period of one continuous year within 3 years prior to his/her admission to the States.
Can a spouse get a L2 visa?
Spouse and children of the applicant may receive L-2 visas. Read More L2 Visa Interview Questions and Answers
