Experience needed for L-1B

[Mandrew]

Hello all,

This is my first post, so thank you all pre-emptively for your help.

Basically, the company I work for wants to send me across to their offices in New York for a couple of years, and might I say that I am quite keen on the idea too! In this situation the L-1B visa is by far the best option, but from speaking to one attorney, they have advised that whilst the minimum requirement for the visa is 1 years experience in the firm, very few people's applications are approved with fewer than 5 years in a position (I have 18 months).

Is this typically the case, or have we found an overly cautious lawyer? Does anyone have any experience with this aspect of the process? We are a small company and so do not have the ready resources of some other organisations, so we want to make sure that the application is accepted first time!

Thanks!

[raghvi]

Hello all,

This is my first post, so thank you all pre-emptively for your help.

Basically, the company I work for wants to send me across to their offices in New York for a couple of years, and might I say that I am quite keen on the idea too! In this situation the L-1B visa is by far the best option, but from speaking to one attorney, they have advised that whilst the minimum requirement for the visa is 1 years experience in the firm, very few people's applications are approved with fewer than 5 years in a position (I have 18 months).

Is this typically the case, or have we found an overly cautious lawyer? Does anyone have any experience with this aspect of the process? We are a small company and so do not have the ready resources of some other organisations, so we want to make sure that the application is accepted first time!

Thanks!

I won't say your lawyer is completely wrong or right either. You got to understand the nature and purpose of L1 visas.

There have been extra scrutiny of L1 applications off late with the expectations of more stricter compliance of L1 requirements. And one of the understandings is that the employee is being sent to the US office because he/ she is well versed with company processes, product, etc. it's difficult to convince USCIS that one can have all this proprietary knowledge by being with the company for 18 months. And this may be the reason the lawyers may be cautioning you. Anyhow, I believe this is just one of the factors, the same can be overcome , if one can show strong documentation with respect to experience, and or product , process knowledge to compensate for the lesser experience with the company.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[Mandrew]

Thank you raghvi for your reply.

Personally, I feel there is a strong case for me to be sent over to the US, but I think the company is more hesitant to risk the money on a venture that may not work, which is wholly understandable especially considering the reasons given. The requirements for the specialised knowledge visa do state that the petition may be granted if hiring a US worker will cause economic harm to the company, in which hiring a new employee can often do (even if it is with the time taken to get fully up to speed), so from the outside it seems as if it would be approved. Though the crux of the matter is seeing whether the USCIS take an open minded, more generous view of applications, or that they had a further, stricter criteria that they apply whilst reviewing.