TWO weeks ago, Lea Garcia called our office to inquire about L-1 Intracompany transfers. Her sister, Sandra, is working with a US corporation in Singapore and was recently offered a job in Buena Park. An Operations Manager with American Express, Sandra is eligible to transfer to the US under the L-1 Intracompany Transfer program of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (UCSIS).

Certain managers, executives, or employees with specialized knowledge who have been working for a business entity (corporation, partnership or sole proprietor) may be transferred to a qualifying US corporation in L-1 status in order to continue their employment with the same employer in the United States. The definition of a manager includes an employee who manages an essential function of the business within a qualifying organization.

Specialized knowledge employees must have special knowledge of the organization’s product, service, research, equipment, management, or other interests, and its application in international markets, or an advanced knowledge or expertise in the organization’s processes and procedures.

To qualify for L-1, the following conditions must be met:

• The United States corporation is the same firm, corporation, or other legal entity, or parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary thereof, for whom the beneficiary has been employed abroad;

• The employee to be transferred is a manager, executive, or foreign national having specialized knowledge of the foreign employer, and is to continue to be employed in the United States as a managerial or in an executive position or a position requiring specialized knowledge;

• The employee has been employed by the foreign corporation for one continuous year within the three previous years prior to being transferred to the United States;

• A requisite employer-employee relationship exists, and will continue to exist after the employee is transferred to the United States;

• Both the foreign corporation and the United States corporation will continue to do business during the period that the employee is transferred to the United States; and

• The employee is not subject to the limitation on readmission for former L and H aliens, or the two-year foreign residence requirement for former exchange visitors, or is not otherwise inadmissible to the United States.

The L-1 petition is filed with the USCIS’ regional service center having jurisdiction over the place of intended employment. The petitioning company must be doing business in the United States and at least one other country for the duration of the intracompany transferee’s stay in the United States.

Both the US and the foreign company must be active. Except for a company that is opening a new office in the United States, the initial petition may be granted for a three-year period and renewed in two-year increments up to the maximum permitted stay. Classifying the employee in the right category is very important, particularly if the company might sponsor the employee for permanent residence.

The intracompany transferee petition always should be structured to allow the easiest transition to permanent resident status. A transferee’s spouse or unmarried children under 21 years old may be granted L-2 visas. An L-2 visa holder is not permitted to work in the United States, but may attend school. The L non-immigrant visa is a very useful resource for multinational and international companies needing to bring foreign employees to the United States.

As such, it is advisable to obtain the assistance of a legal firm like ours, the Law Offices of James G. Beirne (Asian American Legal Center). Our office will help US companies successfully document the alien’s qualifications and work experience, the relationship between the foreign and US company, the nature of the work to be performed, and other related issues.

For more information, call the Law Offices of James G. Beirne (Asian American Legal Center) (818) 552-4500 or (562) 865-4480. First consultation is free. We will help you analyze your situation and advise you about the best course to take.