The L-1B Visa: How to QualifyThe standard for qualification under the L-1B visa program involves two broad areas in which the applicant must meet the criteria outlined under the United States immigration laws. The applicant must demonstrate that his or her employer meets the definition of a qualifying organization “doing business as an employer in the United States.” Additionally, the employee must show that he or she has previously worked abroad for the qualifying organization for at least one continuous year within the last three years prior to his or her admission to the United States. Further, as a guest worker in the U.S. will apply specialized knowledge as part of his or her employment.
To qualify for L-1B classification in this category, the employer must:
Qualifying Relationship with a Foreign Company A qualifying relationship with a foreign company refers to the requirement that the multinational company employing the L-1B applicant overseas offices and its U.S. offices must be part of the same organization. They must be the same firm or company, or related as a parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary of the corporation. Doing Business as an Employer in the United States During the length of the guest worker's stay in the U.S. as an L-1B worker, the employer organization must be “doing business” through entities in the U.S. and at least one other country through a qualifying relationship. “Doing business” means the regular, systematic, and continuous provision of goods and/or services by a qualifying organization and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office of the qualifying organization. To qualify, the named employee must also:
The guest worker must have been employed abroad by the qualifying organization for one year continuously within the 3 years preceding filing the L-1 petition. Further, the employment abroad must have been full time, not part time. Work in a Specialized Knowledge Capacity According to USCIS specialized knowledge is, “knowledge possessed by an individual of the petitioning organization’s product, service, research, equipment, techniques, management, or other interests and its application in international markets, or advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the organization’s processes and procedures.” (See 8 CFR 214.2(l)(1)(ii)(D)). Specialized knowledge involves knowledge that is above and beyond that an ordinary employee would possess and should be specific to the employers operations and not simply a high level of general knowledge. |
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