L1-B Blanket Extension Denial

[gaggarwal]

Hi All,

My L1-B Blanket extension request has been recently denied by USCIS and I am planning to travel back to my home country within next 7 days. Will my employer be able to apply for L1-B Individual immediately or will I be required to wait for another 1 year to show employment with a foreign employer for 12 consecutive months before L1 can applied again. Please suggest, any leads will be highly appreciated.

[Libra_14]

If your earlier petition is expired - they you'll need to wait for an year outside USA.

[gaggarwal]

Thanks Libra_14 . As I understand, L1-B initial petition is for a maximum for 5 years. I have stayed in US for first 3 years but then extension request for another 2 years got denied. My firm is now looking to apply L1-A Blanket but I am wondering whether I will be required to wait for 1 year outside or not since the initial petition has only exhausted 3.5 years. Please advise.

[lisaanderson]

1. You will not have to wait for 1 year outside the US as you were in the US working for the same company that is applying for you again.
2. I’m sure your company’s attorneys would not suggest filing for L-1A Blanket unless they were sure you qualified.