L-1A and L-1B Visa Requirements, Timeline and Green Card

An L-1 lets a company move an employee from abroad to its US office. Managers and executives come on L-1A, employees with specialized knowledge on L-1B. The core rule is one year with the company in the last three, and much depends on whether the company already has a US office. Below are the requirements, the timeline and the route to a green card. To have a lawyer handle the case, see our L-1 visa service.

L-1A vs L-1B at a glance

	L-1A	L-1B
Who	manager or executive	employee with specialized knowledge of the company
What you prove	you manage people, a function or the company	knowledge of products, processes or methods beyond a typical professional
First approval	up to 3 years, new office up to 1 year	same
Maximum stay	7 years	5 years
Green card	EB-1C, no PERM	usually PERM with EB-2 or EB-3

The rules are in 8 CFR 214.2(l) and on the USCIS pages for L-1A and L-1B.

L-1 visa requirements – four checks before you file

These four points rule out most cases that will not work.

L-1A requirements – who counts as a manager, and what specialized knowledge means

For L-1A, what you do matters more than your title. A manager runs the company, a department or a key function, supervises other managers or professionals and makes hiring and budget decisions. If most of your day goes to selling, bookkeeping and answering customers, USCIS will see someone doing the work rather than managing it.

For L-1B, the knowledge does not have to be unique in the world. It has to go beyond what a typical professional in the field knows and relate to your company’s products, processes or methods. There is no US labor market test and no need to show that no US worker was available.

The new office – your first year

If the US company has been doing business for less than a year, it is a “new office”. The petition includes a lease for the premises and shows that within a year the office can support a managerial position – a hiring plan, budget, source of funds and structure. The first approval is for one year at most.

To extend, you show the office is operating: staff hired, contracts and revenue in place, and you managing rather than doing everything yourself. Start on the hiring plan and first deals from month one.

Pros and cons of the L-1 visa

L-1 suits an operating business, but it ties you closely to the company.

L-1 processing time and extensions

USCIS first decides the I-129. Regular processing times are posted by USCIS, and premium processing costs $2,965. After approval you book a consular interview. Canadian citizens can instead file the petition with CBP at a land port of entry or a pre-clearance station in Canada.

The first approval is for up to 3 years, or up to one year for a new office. Extensions come in 2-year steps until the limit – 7 years for L-1A, 5 for L-1B. After that you must spend a year outside the US before a new L or H status.

Moving from L-1 to a green card

L-1 allows dual intent – applying for a green card does not hurt your status or extensions.

L-1A managers usually fit EB-1C, the category for multinational managers and executives. The employer files Form I-140 with no labor certification (PERM). You must have managed abroad for at least one year in the three before, and the US company must have been doing business for at least a year and be related to the foreign one.

L-1B specialists usually go through employer sponsorship with PERM under EB-2 or EB-3. If you move into a managerial role while in the US, you can switch to L-1A and then EB-1C – to get the full L-1A period you need at least 6 months in the managerial role.

Before you file, answer two questions – who does the day-to-day work in the US office, and what the manager will be doing a year from now. Approval, extension and your EB-1C chances all depend on those answers.

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