Rachel Browning’s Legal Blog

Is your company a multi-national corporation looking to expand operations in the United States?  Do you have highly qualified individuals working for you abroad, whose knowledge and experience would prove invaluable to your company in the U.S.?  Are you intrigued by the possibility of filing a petition on behalf of a qualified foreign national employee without being subject to annual quotas and labor condition applications?  Then an L Visa just may be the answer to your business needs.

L-1 nonimmigrant status is an employer specific, employment-based nonimmigrant status available to a foreign national employed abroad (for at least 1 year in the preceding 3) who seeks to come  to the United States to work for an affiliate U.S. employer in either a managerial/executive (L-1A) or specialized knowledge capacity (L-1B). L-1 status is generally approved for an initial period of three years. L-1A (manager/executive) status can be extended up to a statutory limit of seven years; L-1B status is limited to a total of five years.  The immigration lawyers at Smith & Garg, LLC, can explain the procedure involved in obtaining L-1 status.

But wait, there’s more!

Certain multi-national corporations can take advantage of the Blanket L Visa option in order to transfer employees to the U.S. Once a Blanket L Petition is approved for the company, qualified employees abroad can use the approval and apply for entry to the U.S. directly at the Consulate; thus avoiding the often lengthy processing times by the USCIS of individual L Petitions.

In order to be qualified for the Blanket L Visa, the company (hereinafter, “petitioner”) must meet the following criteria:

·          Petitioner and each entity included in the Blanket L Petition are engaged in commercial trade or services;

·          Petitioner has an office in the U.S. that has been doing business for 1 or more years;

·          Petitioner has 3 or more domestic and foreign branches, affiliates or subsidiaries; and

·          Petitioner and other qualifying entities have done at least one of the following:

·         Obtained at least 10 prior individual L approvals during previous 12 months

·         Have U.S. subsidiaries or affiliates with combined annual sales of at least $25 million; or

·         Have a U.S. workforce of at least 1000 employees.

In addition to the above criteria, one additional difference between the Blanket L requirements and those of the individual L petition is that the employees on whose behalf the Petitioner seeks to apply must either be an executive, manager, or “specialized knowledge professional.”  The “specialized knowledge professional” is a slightly different category of individual than the “specialized knowledge” worker seeking individual L-1B classification.  According to USCIS interpretation, a “specialized knowledge professional” has either a U.S. or foreign-equivalent (i.e. 4-year) bachelor’s degree.

                There are, of course, other factors to consider.  But in this day and age of quotas, excruciating processing times and partisan dead-lock in Congress, the L Visa option could prove to be a quick and relatively smooth commercial endeavor.  Contact us with your questions and to schedule an appointment to discuss these options further.