Perhaps the most advantageous type of Non-Immigrant visa one may obtain is the L-1A Visa for “Intracompany Transferees.”   The L-1A visa is so valuable because in many instances it may naturally lead to Permanent Resident (Green Card) status.  This category was designed to enable the temporary transfer of foreign nationals with management and/or executive skills to the United States to continue employment with an office of the same employer, its parent, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate.

The L-1A is granted initially for three years (one year if the US entity is a “new office”) and may be renewed in two-year increments for a maximum stay of seven years.  Most often, the green card will be obtained well before the seven-year limit is reached.

The basic requirements for L-1A classification are as follows:

(i) The ownership of the business entity in the United States and the foreign operation that employs the alien abroad must be “substantially similar.”

(ii) For the duration of the alien's stay in the United States as an intracompany transferee, the petitioner must continue to do business both in the United States and in at least one other country, either directly or through a parent, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate.

(iii) The alien must have been employed abroad continuously by the foreign operation for the immediate prior year. Although authorized periods of stay in the United States for the foreign employer are not interruptive of the immediate prior year of employment, such periods may not be counted towards the qualifying year of employment abroad.

(iv) The alien's prior year of employment abroad and his prospective employment in the US must be in a managerial and/or executive capacity.

(v) The petitioner and the alien must have the intent for the alien to come to the United States for a temporary period and return abroad at the end of the authorized stay, unless the alien becomes a permanent resident of the United States during the authorized stay.

(vi) The petitioner must be able to document the existence of foreign operations to which the employee can reasonably be expected to be transferred at the end of his or her assignment in the United States.

(vii) The petitioner must be actively engaged in providing goods and/or services in the United States and abroad, either directly or through a parent, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate, with employee in both countries, for the duration of the alien's stay. The mere presence of an agent or office of the petitioner is insufficient evidence of this requirement.

A less advantageous, but still valuable alternative is the L-1B Visa, which is reserved for Specialized Knowledge employees.  The term "specialized knowledge" implies that eligibility is dependent upon a showing that a person possesses a type of knowledge and advanced level of expertise that are different from the ordinary or usual in a particular field, process, or function. Knowledge which is widely held or related to common practices or techniques and which is readily available in the United States job market is not specialized for purposes of L classification.

The L-1B is usually less desirable because it does not lead to a green card and has a five-year limit (as opposed to the seven years allowed for an L-1A). 

A procedural option available mostly to large companies is the “Blanket L” petition. The blanket petition program allows a petitioner to seek continuing approval of itself, its parent, and its branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates as qualifying organizations and, later, classification of multiple numbers of aliens employed by itself, its parent, or some of its branches, subsidiaries, and affiliates. Thus, the employer is able to streamline the process.  As stated above, the program is restricted to relatively large international employers who are engaged in commercial trade or services.

As you can see, the L visa can be a very useful and rewarding tool for international businesses and their managers, executives and specialized knowledge employees.