IN THIS GUIDE · Prove the corporate link before arguing about the job title
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
The ownership record is the first gate
A qualifying relationship means the two organizations stand as parent and subsidiary, branch, or affiliates under common ownership and control. The record that proves it is a share register, articles, a partnership agreement or a corporate resolution, not an organizational chart drawn for the petition. Rural dealership groups frequently hold assets across several numbered companies and a family holding entity, and the structure that exists on paper may not be the structure everyone describes in conversation. Establish the actual ownership and control chain, in writing, before any duties are described.
The qualifying year is measured, not estimated
The employee must have been employed abroad by a qualifying organization for one continuous year within the three years preceding the petition, and the evidence is payroll and employment records covering that period. Seasonal layoffs, a shift onto a related company's payroll, or a period of contract work rather than employment can each break what looked like a continuous year. Count it against the actual records rather than against memory. Where the year is broken, the fix is usually time and a corrected employment arrangement, not a differently worded letter.
Managerial or executive is a description of daily work
L-1A requires that the U.S. role be primarily managerial or executive. In a service operation the honest question is what proportion of the day is spent directing staff or functions and exercising discretion, and what proportion is spent doing the technical work personally. A working supervisor who also turns wrenches most of the week is a difficult L-1A candidate regardless of the title on the door. Describe the reporting lines, the decisions the person makes without approval, and the staff or function managed, and let that description carry the claim.
Duration and placement limits shape the plan
L-1A status is subject to a seven-year maximum, and a new office is normally approved initially for one year with evidence of secured premises and the capacity to support the role, after which continuation depends on what the branch has actually become. If the transferee will spend significant time at customers' sites, the arrangement must remain genuine employment controlled by the petitioner rather than labour supplied for hire to another business. L-2 spouses are employment-authorized incident to status; children in dependent status are not.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.