L-1A & L-1B Intracompany Transferee Visas

The L-1A or L-1B visa is available to employees of international companies who have worked abroad for a related company for at least one year in the three years immediately preceding the filing of the application. L-1A classification is available to managers or executives for up to seven years stay in the United States; L-1B classification is available to employees with specialized knowledge who may remain in the United States for a total of five years. The requirements for the visa include:

1) The employee must have been employed full time.

2) The employment must have been managerial or executive (L4A).

a) Managerial is defined as:

i. Manages the organization or a department, subdivision, function or component of the organization.

ii. Supervises and controls the work of other supervisory, professional or managerial employees or manages a function within the organization or department or subdivision of the organization.

iii. Has the authority to hire and fire and recommend personnel actions (such as promotion and leave authorization) if other employees are directly supervised; if no other employee is directly supervised, functions at a senior level within the organizational hierarchy or with respect to function managed.

iv. Exercises discretion over the day-to-day operations of the activity or function for which the employee has authority. A first-line supervisor is not considered to be acting in managerial capacity merely by virtue of the supervisor's supervisory duties unless the employees supervised are professional.

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