L1 B Filing while H1 B Admin processing

[summi1107]

Hello,

My situation
My H1 B had an admin processing in mar 2011, can i apply for L1B. Also my H1 B expired

Please advise.

Thanks
Suma

[raghvi]

L1 B Filing while H1 B Admin processing

L1B and H1B are not interchangeable visas, they both were designed with different purpose in mind. If you are eligible for L1B you can apply for it. Please read about criteria for L1B and see if you qualify. L1B has to be applied by foreign subsidiary of a company , and their are rules for a qualifying organization. Not all employers and employees qualify for L1.

General Qualifications of the Employer and Employee

To qualify for L-1 classification in this category, the employer must

1. Have a qualifying relationship with a foreign company (parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate, collectively referred to as qualifying organizations); and

2. Currently be, or will be, doing business as an employer in the United States and in at least one other country directly or through a qualifying organization for the duration of the beneficiary’s stay in the United States as an L-1. While the business must be viable, there is no requirement that it be engaged in international trade.
Doing business means the regular, systematic, and continuous provision of goods and/or services by a qualifying organization and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office of the qualifying organization in the United States and abroad.

Also to qualify, the named employee must

1. Generally have been working for a qualifying organization abroad for one continuous year within the three years immediately preceding his or her admission to the United States; and
2. Be seeking to enter the United States to render services in a specialized knowledge capacity to a branch of the same employer or one of its qualifying organizations.
Specialized knowledge means special knowledge possessed by an individual of the petitioning organization’s product, service, research, equipment, techniques, management, or other interests and its application in international markets, or expertise in the organization’s processes and procedures. (See 8 CFR 214.2(l)(1)(ii)(D).) Such knowledge is beyond the ordinary and not commonplace within the industry or the petitioning organization. In other words, the employee must be more than simply skilled or familiar with the employer’s interests.

This is my opinion, please do seek expert opinion too.