IN THIS GUIDE · Show how responsibility will move from delivering services to directing the operation
Meet the transfer and new-office conditions
The organizations must have a qualifying relationship and meet the doing-business requirements. The foreign work generally must include one continuous full-time qualifying year within the relevant three-year period, with the timing assessed for the individual's case. For a new office, evidence includes sufficient physical premises and a plan capable of supporting a managerial or executive position within one year of approval. Initial new-office approval is limited to a maximum of one year; the business forecast does not extend that period. The ordinary qualifying foreign year may be managerial, executive or specialized-knowledge employment; the U.S. role must meet the requested classification. The group must continue regular, systematic business in the United States and at least one other country. For new-office L-1A, the foreign year must specifically be managerial or executive. The new-office trigger is less than one year of qualifying U.S. business activity. An owner or major stockholder must also show temporary U.S. services and a subsequent foreign assignment.
Describe decisions, not only titles
Choose several recurring business decisions the applicant would be responsible for after transfer. Explain the authority involved and identify who would do the underlying operational work. Where the business relies on contractors, describe the real arrangement rather than presenting them as employees. If the plan leaves the applicant doing most service delivery, that is an assessment issue to address openly.
Keep corporate history separate from the current brand
A company may trade under one name while payroll, contracts and ownership records use several legal entities. Prepare a dated map of those entities and the applicant's employment. Include the documents behind a reorganization or transfer. The reviewer needs to distinguish a trading-name change from a change of legal employer without having to infer the answer from today's website.
Explain how the U.S. operation will support the role
For a new operation, collect the evidence behind premises, staffing and financial assumptions. A forecast should say which facts are established and which remain planned. Use the company's actual records when describing resources; an impressive growth target is not a substitute for an explanation of how work will be performed and managed.
Start the operating record before extension preparation
Preserve dated evidence as hiring, customer work and management responsibilities develop. If results differ from the original plan, retain the reason and discuss material changes with the reviewer. Track immigration validity dates independently of commercial deadlines. Later preparation is easier when the company has maintained ordinary business records instead of trying to reconstruct its first year from memory.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.