There is no universal L-1A staffing quota. The evidence should address the operation’s reasonable needs and whether the applicant will primarily manage or act as an executive.
Distinguish business staffing from filing costs
A real staffing plan may matter to the role, especially at a new office, but artificial positions do not cure weak authority. Budget actual operating commitments separately from petition fees, records and optional professional assistance. Do not describe a consultant’s suggested team size as a government requirement.
For a small seasonal business the petition's cost sits mostly in accounting and administrative time: producing three years of payroll, reconstructing an organizational chart that was never written down, obtaining corporate registers and share transfer records, and gathering proof that both companies are actually trading. L-1A requires a primarily managerial or executive American role plus one continuous year of qualifying foreign employment in the previous three years with a related parent, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate; a salary increase supplies none of those elements. Employers planning a transfer around an employee whose record includes a gap should budget the additional preparation time as the real cost driver, rather than expecting a separate line-item government fee for the continuity issue itself.