Intracompany Transferee

Immigration Lawyer of Berger & Berger providing definition of an L-Visa

Overview

An L-1 intracompany transferee is an alien coming temporarily to perform services in a managerial, executive, or specialized knowledge capacity. The alien must have worked for the same corporation or firm, or for the branch, subsidiary or affiliate of the employer which employed him or her abroad, for one continuous year within the three-year period immediately preceding the filing of the petition, in an executive, managerial or specialized knowledge capacity.

Definitions of Employees that may come to the U.S.:
Manager: Managerial capacity is defined as an assignment within an organization in which the employee primarily: 1) manages the organization or a department, subdivision, function, or component of the organization, 2) supervises and controls the work of other supervisory, professional, or managerial employees, 3) has the authority to hire and fire or recommend those as well as other personnel actions, and (4) exercises discretion over the day-to-day operations of the activity or function for which the employee has authority.

Executive: Executive capacity is defined as an assignment within an organization in which the employee primarily: (1) directs the management of the organization or a major component or function of the organization, (2) establishes the goals and policies of the organization, component, or function, (3) exercises wide latitude in discretionary decision-making, and (4) receives only general supervision or direction from higher level executives, the board of directors, or stockholders of the organization.

Specialized Knowledge: Specialized knowledge is defined as special knowledge possessed by an individual of the petitioning organization’s product, service, research, equipment, techniques, management, or other interests and its application in international markets, or an advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the organization’s processes and procedures.

Definition of Qualifying Organization:

A U.S. employer or foreign employer may file the petition, but a foreign employer must have a legal business entity in the U.S. The company or organization must be a qualifying organization. A qualifying organization is defined as a United States or foreign firm, corporation, or other legal entity which:
• meets one of the definitions of a parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary specified in the code;
• is or will be doing business as an employer in the U.S. and in at least one other country directly through a parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary for the duration of the alien's stay in the U.S. (Doing business is defined as the regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods and/or services by a qualifying organization and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office of the qualifying organization in the U.S. and abroad).

Application Process
A petition for an L-1 visa must be filed by the company with the appropriate USCIS service center. Except for a company that is opening a new office in the U.S., the initial petition may be granted for a three-year period and renewed in two-year increments up to the maximum permitted stay. New offices are limited to an initial 12-month period, with extensions depending on the business and financial performance of the new office.

Once the petition is approved, the employee may apply for the L-1 visa at the U.S. Consulate abroad. If the employee is in the United States and is maintaining some other legal status, in many cases, he or she may apply for a change of status in the United States. However, this option is not available to those who entered the U.S. on a Visa Waiver Program.

A transferee’s spouse or unmarried children under 21 years old may be granted L-2 visas. Spouses of L-1 visa holders may apply for work authorization. Other L-2 visa holders, however, are not permitted to work, although they may attend school.

Duration of Visa

The L-1 is a temporary visa with limitations on periods of stay in the United States.

• If the employee is qualified as a manager or executive, he or she may remain in the United States for up to seven (7) years;
• If the employee is classified as a specialized knowledge employee, he or she may remain in the United States for up to five (5) years;
• An exception to these limits exists where the employment in the United States is seasonal, intermittent, or for an aggregate of six months or less per year.