Called the "Intracompany Transferee Visa", the L1 Visa is a non-immigrant work Visa that allows a multinational company to transfer an employee from its country to the United States. Known as particularly easy to obtain, this type of authorization would also make it easier for the Green Card holder to access the Green Card. Here's all you need to know before you accept your transfer to the U. S.
In order to transfer an employee from a foreign country to a U. S. subsidiary, a company must meet the following conditions:
To obtain the L1 Visa, the employee must hold a specific position and hold one of the following specific status:
The Manager will hold an executive position and will be eligible for the L-1A Visa. He will need to have the following skills:
The executive will be able to benefit from the L-1A status. But for this to happen, it will need to be given the following competencies:
It should be noted that a manager coming to work in the United States as part of a transfer to a subsidiary is entitled to apply for and receive a Green Card as a "priority worker" after one year.
Any employee transferred because of "specialized knowledge or skills" relating to the parent company may be granted an L-1B Visa. They must have the ability to teach their "know-how" to branch employees.
The L-1 status entitles the holder to reside in the United States for a period of:
To maximize your chances of obtaining L-1 status, when you are interviewed at the embassy, bring the following documents with you:
Here are the answers to the questions you often ask yourself before applying for your L-1 Visa.
A: In reality, there are no restrictions. A foreign company is not required to carry on the same business activities in its home country when it establishes a subsidiary in the United States. It is even free to start a completely different activity if it meets all the requirements.
A: No. It is not necessary for the company to employ a large number of employees, nor is the number of employees limited. In the same vein, the executive or manager does not have to manage a whole team of collaborators in order to obtain his or her Visa.
In practice, however, it is difficult to obtain L-1 status, except in the case of start-up, if the foreign company and the U. S. company do not have employees.
Q. What authorization for the family in case of a transfer to the USA?
A. When you qualify for an L-1 Visa, your spouse and unmarried children under 21 years of age can obtain L-2 Visas simply by providing proof of their relationship to you.
Spouses with an L-2 Visa can also obtain a work permit while in the United States. They can also go to school.
Spouses of L1 Visa holders are allowed to work in the United States. But, they must apply to the Immigration and Naturalization Service for prior authorization.
If you are entitled to an L-1 Visa or if you now have one either as a manager or an executive, you may also be entitled to a Green Card through your employment. In addition to being eligible, you will also have the advantage of being able to obtain the Green Card without going through the rigorous Workplace Certification procedures, which is usually the first step for those who are looking to obtain Green Cards through your employment.
The purpose of the Labor Certification procedure is to show that there are no American workers available to take up the work that has been offered to you in the United States. However, if you qualify for status L-1 as a manager or manager, you also enter a Green Card preferential category called priority workers. This category is exempt from Occupational Certification requirements.