L1B Blanket refusal under section 221(g) of INA

[potamo]

Hi All,
I would like to share my experience and looking for guidance from you if you have come across a situation similar to this
1) I had appeared for L1B visa stamping interview on 13th April at Chennai Consulate
2) VO asked me following questions:
I. Name of the organization I currently work with
II. My customer name at US
III. Location of the customer
IV. How long I have been working with HCL
V. My proposed salary at onsite
3) After this he started taking look at my I191S paper and confirmed whether mine is a L1B blanket petition
4) He asked me to name my specialized skills
5) After I elaborated my special skills as per petition , he asked me to hold and started doing something in computer
6) He worked for more than 7 minutes in his computer and simply asked me to wait during that period
7) Then he looked at me stating L1B blanket is a very restricted category of visa and at that time he could adjudge my petition as ?Not Clearly Approvable? and stamped at the action block section of my I191S paper and returned me along with passport
8) He suggested me that I touched base with our HR/Immigration team to know more about this case and apply in different categories(L1A/L1B Individual)
9) Since I do not have a clue of the reason for this decision and I found my case status as ?Administrative Processing? at CEAC website, so I called up US Visa help desk and got below response to my query(see the highlighted part)

On further inquiry with US Visa Help desk, I came to know that the petition has been refused under section221(g) of INA and the status in CEAC website has still been showing as "Administrative Processing"
Could you please guide me whether any action will be taken on the petition or I need to go ahead with L1B Individual. In case of L1B Individual, is the expectation that the Petitioner shows Speciality experiences in different set of tools rather that what he or she had shown during Blanket Petition which got refused
Any help will be really appreciated
Potamo

[ankush9804]

You can go ahead with L1 Individual, I had similar experience L1 Blanket denied in April then L1-Individual was approved though there was RFE on the individual petition.

L1 Individual visa interview is generally straightforward and informal.

[Libra_14]

Blanket visas generally dependent on VO's discretion that he found you as a real candidate. However in Individual petition, your whole profile is submitted in hard copy to USCIS & it is thoroughly verified.

So, VOs usually deny blanket visa application even on an iota of doubt. However they feel much better for an individual petition & approves the visa after some simple questions.

Best of luck with your individual petition.

[potamo]

Few more queries on L1B Individual Petition

Thanks a lot for sharing your views on L1B Blanket. However I have few queries or doubts with regards to L1B Individual petition after this refusal:
1) Is there an advisable time gap after which L1B Individual petition can be filed after L1B Blanket refusal. Although USCIS does not specify any time limit but is it advisable to wait over 6 months to 1 year before L1B Petition can be filed again
2) For L1B Petition, is there any requirement that specialization experiences have to be in line with what was provided as area of specializations etc during L1B Blanket Petition. Does USCIS refer back earlier petition to validate and raise RFE
3) For L1B Individual, is it mandatory that they would go for RFE route or they can Petition Reject as well without RFE
4) Usually what is the time frame within which USCIS responds after L1B Individual Petition is submitted
Once again, thanks in advance

[Libra_14]

1) Is there an advisable time gap after which L1B Individual petition can be filed after L1B Blanket refusal. Although USCIS does not specify any time limit but is it advisable to wait over 6 months to 1 year before L1B Petition can be filed again

No time gap needed, you can apply immediately. Blanket denial must have said "Not clearly approvable" - which means, VO was not sure in first place to give you visa - which means, that with proper documentation you can still visit USA.

2) For L1B Petition, is there any requirement that specialization experiences have to be in line with what was provided as area of specializations etc during L1B Blanket Petition. Does USCIS refer back earlier petition to validate and raise RFE

Yes, for L1B, your company mentions that you are an "expert" in something, which no one else can be. And you cannot switch that "expertise" within a month.

3) For L1B Individual, is it mandatory that they would go for RFE route or they can Petition Reject as well without RFE

RFE stands for "Request for evidence", If the application is complete - no RFE will be sent. If the application is missing some trivial document - RFE will be sent. If the application seems **** - It will be rejected.
So it all depends on your application.

4) Usually what is the time frame within which USCIS responds after L1B Individual Petition is submitted

4-6 months. You can choose to go with Premium Processing if you want.

[visanme]

L1B extension denied, L1 individual filing with new Title

Need expert advise.. my situation is bit more complex.. L1B extension was denied at Chennai consulate and company is going to file L1 individual before I94 expires by mid-dec. However, I have a new Offer of Technical Manager (same company) in hand. If I go ahead and accept the new position under same specialized skills what is the impact/risk or success rate in filing L1B individual with new Title.. I also understand that it's not a strong case for L1A which is OK at this point. Please advise.

[Libra_14]

I have similar denial last month.. My company wants to file L1 individual. in US.
The situation is I recently have received an internal offer for Technical Product Manager. Will it be safe to file L-1 individual petition with new Title?

Not after l1 A as its a new job so doesn't make a strong case considering scrutiny happening at USCIS.

Please suggest.

Please do not just put your questions everywhere on the forum. Your question will be answered here:

https://www.immihelp.com/forum/showthread.php/243679-L1B-Extension-Denial-Internal-Job-Movement-What-s-right

[potamo]

First of all many many thanks for your replies and guidance. As my cool off period is over, I am suggested to go forward for L1B Individual application. I would like to provide little details on my expertise to seek more detailed response with regards to my Application this time. In my L1B Blanket application, I have specified 4 specialized areas, out of that 3 are tools and one was a methodology. I was told by VO that L1B has got a very narrow scope and hence my specializations do not meet the scope. Now when I am proceeding for L1B Individual application, so could you prescribe whether I need to produce additional documents like Certifications in specialized areas, any letter from customer acknowledging specializations, any IPs. Is there any guideline from DHS/USCIS with minimum list of documents needed for L1B Individual. Any assistance will be really great

[Libra_14]

First of all many many thanks for your replies and guidance. As my cool off period is over, I am suggested to go forward for L1B Individual application. I would like to provide little details on my expertise to seek more detailed response with regards to my Application this time. In my L1B Blanket application, I have specified 4 specialized areas, out of that 3 are tools and one was a methodology. I was told by VO that L1B has got a very narrow scope and hence my specializations do not meet the scope. Now when I am proceeding for L1B Individual application, so could you prescribe whether I need to produce additional documents like Certifications in specialized areas, any letter from customer acknowledging specializations, any IPs. Is there any guideline from DHS/USCIS with minimum list of documents needed for L1B Individual. Any assistance will be really great

There is no guidelines published by DHS/USCIS. By definition, the word specialized means, you have some knowledge which no one else have or can get - specially some company's proprietor tools.

Certificate from Company's internal training would help, but generic certificate like, MCP, SCJP won't help.