How does an L-1 visa work?

[trenda]

My employer applied for an H-1B visa for me, but I failed the lottery twice; this year will be my final chance. My lawyer advised me to look into the L-1 visa. My direct employer has offices only in the United States, but our parent company is huge and big; they have offices everywhere on the globe. The attorney said I may work at an international office outside the US of router login 192.168.l.l.link/ any company that is a subsidiary of the parent company, and once I'm qualified for L-1 (maybe a year), I can transfer back to the subsidiary in the US under an L-1 visa. My question is, how will this work? Do I have to be a part of the parent or affiliate company's payroll? Do I have to leave my current job to work with a company outside the United States?

[Atty_Divij_Kishore]

Sorry to hear that you were not selected in the H-1B CAP Lottery. Your question is very broad but I will try to address it - to at least provide a high-level overview.

There are several requirements for you and your employer to qualify for the ability to employ you pursuant to the L-1 Visa. These are:

1. Corporate level qualification - The foreign employer and your US employer must have a qualifying corporate relationship between them. Depending on the type and structure of the corporations, there are several relationships that qualify. Your employer will need to meet one of them. The relationships are:
   1. parent-subsidiary relationship
   2. branch office
   3. joint venture
   4. affiliates - i.e., both companies are under the control of a third entity or person who is the same person
2. Business Operations: the operations of your employer outside the US and the one in the US will need to be demonstrated to be ongoing for 12 months. These operations outside the US must continue without you after your transfer to the US.
3. Employment-level requirements:
   1. You must be employed with an entity related to your US employer (who will be the L-1 Petitioner) for at least 12 consecutive months within 3 years before the date on which you seek admission to the US. If you worked with the same conglomerate before you came to the US, you may already qualify for this.
   2. Your employment outside the US must be in one of the following positions:
      1. Senior Managerial position
      2. Functional managerial position
      3. Executive position
      4. Specialized knowledge position
   3. Your employment in the US must be in a position that also meets one of the above types.

The way this will work is that you will have to leave the US for at least one year. During this time, you must be employed with an entity related to the US employer outside the US (for 12 consecutive months). The easiest way to demonstrate this is to be on the payroll of the foreign related entity. However, contractors for the foreign related entity may also meet this test if they can show that they were under the exclusive control of the foreign related entity - so you were not working with other employers at the same time. It would not make sense for you to stay on the payroll of the US company. However, in some cases, even when the employee abroad is on the payroll of the foreign employer, they are tasked to work as a member of the US team by that foreign employer - i.e., you will still need to be supervised by someone who sits with the foreign employer.

This is a very high-level overview. It does not constitute legal advice. There is a lot more that will need to be considered. You should get specific legal advice.

Depending on several factors including your qualifications, nationality, your employer's business, your role, etc., you may also be eligible for a different visa type that will allow you to remain in the US. Some examples are the TN, E-3, O-1, cap-exempt H-1B. You should also seek advice about these. You may also seek guidance about pursuing a green card - if you are eligible.