L - Intra-company Transfers

Immigration Lawyers: L Visas

L visas allow multinational companies to transfer employees to a division, affiliate, or joint venture partner in the United States. A nonimmigrant visa, the L visa allows these intra-company transferees to live and work in the U.S. for up to five (L1-B) or seven (L1-A) years.

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To qualify for an L visa, the employee must have worked for a subsidiary, parent, affiliate or branch office of a U.S. company outside of the United States for at least one out of the past three years.

The L1-A visa is reserved for executives and managers in a supervisory capacity with a firm. The L1-B visa is available to highly skilled workers with specialized knowledge. For a complete discussion of the definition of "supervisory capacity," "executive capacity," and "specialized knowledge," please visits our L Intracompany Transferees page.

The spouse and dependent minor children of the intracompany transferee qualify for L2 visas, which allow the spouse to work in the U.S.

L1 Blanket Petition

When companies need to transfer a number of foreign employees on short notice, the L-1 blanket petition's provisions permit intracompany transferees to apply for L-1 visas directly at the U.S. consular facilities abroad without the prior approval by USCIS of an individual petition. For more information on L-1 blanket petitions and other helpful information, visit our L Intracompany Transferees page.

From L Visa to Green Card

People working in the U.S. on an L visa may apply for permanent legal residence status; those with an L1-A visa will be given priority over those with an L1-B.

For experienced assistance in petitions for L-1 visas, please contact an immigration attorney at NPZ Law Group, the global mobility lawyers.