| L-1 Visa A Visa for Multinational Executives/Managers |
L-1 Visa Attorney : Law Offices of Giuseppe Scagliarini, Esq.
The L-1 Visa is an important visa category to consider in evaluating the correct
visa strategy for a foreign worker. L-1 visas were created to accomodate the
needs of multinational companies and assist them in transferring executives,
managers, or special knowledge workers in and out of the United States.
The requirements for an L-1 visa are relatively straightforward:
1. The U.S. employer must have a parent, branch, subsidiary or office in a foreign
country;
2. The manager, executive or employee for whom the L1 visa is requested must
have worked for the foreign entity for at least 12 months in the past 3 years; and
3. The transfer must be requested to allow the worker to perform managerial,
executive, or specialized knowledge work for the U.S. employer.
While simple on the surface, a multiplicity of interpretation problems lurks behind
each of the simple terms listed above. What is executive capacity? Does managing
first line supervisors qualify as managerial capacity for L-1 visa purposes? What is
"special knowledge" in the L-1 visa context? Are trips to the United States
interruptive of the one-in-three years employment abroad for L-1 visa purposes?
L-1 visas can be granted in various increments up to a total of seven years for
managers and executives and five years for special knowledge workers. The
spouse and dependents of the L-1 visa holder can follow the principal alien and
will be issued an L-2 visa and, in a relatively recent development, L-2 spouses
have been given the option to request employment authorization while in the USA.
Sometimes, L-1 visa and H1-B visas requirements can be coextensive and a
particular candidate may qualify for more than one visa. This situation needs to be
evaluated carefully. Since the number of years of maximum authorized stay,
employment authorization options for spouses, and the possibility of obtaining an
extension beyond the maximum period of stay vary depending on the visa
classification, it is important to examine these issues in depth to establish the
immigration strategy that best fit the client's needs.
For the same reasons sometimes it may be worth it to consider a change of visa
status while the employee is employed in the US in L-1 or H1-B or E-2 capacity.
All these immigration issues are best addressed as soon as possible in the
employment relationship and not left to rotten and arise as an afterthought when
the immediate problem arise.
It pays off to develop an ongoing, continuous relationship with a skilled
immigration lawyer that can not only respond to the last minutes emergencies of
your business but can guide you through the maze of immigration laws and
regulations.
At the same time, we prefer to work with clients whom we know and trust and
with whom have developed a long lasting, prior relationship. If you would like to
explore the possibility of retaining our law firm for any or all of you immigration
and L1 visa needs, please do not hesitate to contact us to schedule a consultation.
Next: Why it makes sense to seek an L-1 visa.
Law Offices of Giuseppe Scagliarini
| Giuseppe Scagliarini, Esq. 37 Harrison Avenue Newport, RI 02840 Phone: +401-849-1220 Fax +401-633-7055 E-Mail: info@scagliarinilaw.com |
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| Law Offices of Giuseppe Scagliarini Immigration Lawyers - Immigration Attorneys - International Business Attorneys Boston, MA - Providence, RI - Newport, RI |