• Great tool for transferring individuals in leadership roles to important posts throughout your international organization.
• Allows individuals to open a U.S.-based office, if eligibility criteria are met.

• The L-1A visa is dual intent, so holders may be sponsored for permanent residency without travel and employment authorization issues.
• Securing Blanket L Certification eases the application process for companies that file many petitions throughout the year.

Individuals who’ve worked abroad at a foreign affiliate of the sponsoring U.S. company in an executive or managerial capacity.

• The initial stay is three years.
• The total stay is seven years.

Executive capacity refers to the employee’s ability to make major decisions without much oversight.

Managerial capacity refers to the ability of the employee to supervise and direct the work of employees and to manage the organization, or a department, subdivision, function, or another component of the organization.

• Candidates must have worked at a related entity abroad for at least 12 continuous months out of the last three years when applying.
• The work or service must be in an executive or managerial capacity for a branch of the same employer.
• There must be a qualifying relationship with a foreign company such as a parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate.

• Application filing fee: $960
• Premium processing: Employers can pay the $1,225 premium processing fee and USCIS will guarantee the L-1A visa application is processed within 15 calendar days.

If the executive’s or manager’s reason for travel is to open a new office in the United States, the following conditions must be met:

• The employer has secured the physical office location.
• The executive or manager has been employed in that position for one continuous year in the three years preceding the filing of the petition.
• The intended U.S. office will support an executive or managerial position within one year of the approved petition.

Some companies choose to establish an intracompany relationship in place of filing individual L-1 visa petitions. The benefit of Blanket L Certification is that the employee can apply for the L-1 visa directly at the U.S. Consulate. Nothing needs to be filed in the United States, which saves time and cost.

Blanket L Certification may be established if:

• All parties involved are engaged in commercial trade or services.
• The petitioner has a U.S. office that’s been operational for one year.
• There are three or more domestic and foreign branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates.
• All parties have met one of the following:
• Obtained at least 10 L-1 visa approvals during the previous 12-month period.
• Have U.S. subsidiaries or affiliates with combined annual sales of at least $25 million.
• Have a U.S. workforce of at least 1,000 employees.

Employees may be accompanied by their spouses and unmarried children 21 years and under with an L-2 nonimmigrant dependent classification. Dependents are allowed to study. Spouses in L-2 status may apply for work authorization once they are in the United States.

L-1A visas are dual intent, meaning expats may easily be sponsored for permanent residency. L-1A visa holders should begin the green card application process no later than two years prior to their seven-year max-out date to avoid losing work authorization.

An L-1A visa beneficiary must be employed at a company abroad in an executive or managerial level for at least one of the last three years before the L-1A visa is filed. Generally, L-1A holders are admitted to the United States for a three-year period, though in some cases it is only one year.

An L-1B visa beneficiary must have “specialized knowledge” of the technology, processes or procedures of a U.S. company. They must be petitioned by the U.S. company and must be currently employed at one of the U.S. company’s affiliates or international branches. L-1B visa holders are permitted to stay in the United States for three years, with the chance to renew their L-1B for another two years after that.

An L-1 Blanket certificate is issued to select companies of a certain size and who meet a minimum threshold of employees among other requirements.

The “Blanket” petition process is used for U.S. companies who have already received a Blanket L visa approval from USCIS. In a blanket petition, the L-1 beneficiary applies for the visa directly at a U.S. consulate abroad as opposed to filing the petition initially with the USCIS.

• Helps create a culture of workforce mobility within your organization.
• Allows select personnel to lend their skills to others throughout your company.
• Great tool for encouraging talent retention.
• Enables employees to share expertise, foster innovation, and strengthen cross-functional teamwork within the organization.

• There are historically high rates of requests for evidence, so finding the right immigration partner is paramount to creating a robust petition.
• The L-1B visa is dual intent, so holders may be sponsored for permanent residency without travel and employment authorization issues.
• Securing Blanket L Certification eases the application process for companies that file many petitions throughout the year.

The L-1B visa classification allows a U.S. employer to transfer an employee with specialized knowledge relating to the organization from one of its affiliated foreign offices to a U.S. branch.

• The initial stay is three years.
• The total stay is five years.

To qualify, the employee must:

• Have worked in the qualifying organization for at least 12 months within the last three years leading up to transfer.
• Be working in the field of specialized knowledge for a branch of the same employer.

• Application filing fee: $960
• Premium processing: Employers can pay the $1,225 premium processing fee and USCIS will guarantee the L-1B application is processed within 15 calendar days.

One extension permitted for up to two years.

Some companies choose to establish an intracompany relationship in place of filing individual L-1 petitions. The benefit of Blanket L Certification is that the employee can apply for the L-1 visa directly at the U.S. Consulate. Nothing needs to be filed in the United States, which saves time and cost.

Blanket L certification may be established if:

• All parties involved are engaged in commercial trade or services.
• The petitioner has a U.S. office that’s been operational for one year.
• There are three or more domestic and foreign branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates.
• All parties have met one of the following:
• Obtained at least 10 L-1 visa approvals during the previous 12-month period.
• Have U.S. subsidiaries or affiliates with combined annual sales of at least $25 million.
• Have a U.S. workforce of at least 1,000 employees.

Employees may be accompanied by their spouses and unmarried children 21 years and under with an L-2 nonimmigrant dependent visa classification. Dependents are allowed to study. Spouses in L-2 status may apply for work authorization once they are in the United States.

L-1B visas are dual intent, meaning expats may easily be sponsored for permanent residency. L-1B visa holders should begin the green card application process no later than two years prior to their five-year max-out date to avoid losing work authorization.

An L-1A visa beneficiary must be employed at a company abroad in an executive or managerial level for at least one of the last three years before the L-1A visa is filed. Generally, L-1A holders are admitted to the United States for a three-year period, though in some cases it is only one year.

An L-1B visa beneficiary must have “specialized knowledge” of the technology, processes or procedures of a U.S. company. They must be petitioned by the U.S. company and must be currently employed at one of the U.S. company’s affiliates or international branches. L-1B visa holders are permitted to stay in the United States for three years, with the chance to renew their L-1B for another two years after that.

Specialized knowledge means that an individual possesses an advanced level of knowledge or skill relating to the company’s product, services, research, equipment, techniques, or management. The knowledge must be company-specific (e.g., not commercially available), and the employee must be one of few employees with the same level of advanced knowledge. It is reserved for truly unique employees within the organization.