Case Studies: August 2024. L1 visa extension petition approved for a manager from India

Visa Type: L1 Visa
Country: India

Synopsis

In an L-1 "new office" petition, USCIS grants an approval for one year, and if the L1 employee is needed to continue to work in the US, an extension petition has to be filed prior to the one-year expiry.  At this time, it's important to showcase certain elements – business growth, recruitment and the continued need for the L1 employee to remain in the country.  There is no guarantee that USCIS will grant an additional two-year extension period.

For L1 extension filings, USCIS typically exercises more scrutiny and takes into account certain metrics to determine the start-up’s overall growth.  Among other things, the government closely looks at the personnel structure in the US – whether it sufficiently supports the L1 candidate’s managerial or executive role.  At times, support from independent contractors hired by the business along with remote support received from the affiliated foreign entity’s team can also be relied upon to demonstrate the overall organizational structure and support.  Regardless of how much income the new business has generated, it’s important to highlight growth – growth in terms of customers, achievement of milestones over the course of the one-year period and future plans.  Again, it’s imperative to substantiate all of this by documentary evidence.

Our client company, that operates an online magazine portal for the IT and Tech industry, had their L1 extension petition approved for their Associate Director, who was transferred in a managerial capacity on an L1 visa last year to set up their U.S. business.  After the initial period of one year, his extension petition was approved, granting him an additional period of two years.

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