Read the general business expansion overview
For a L’Anse-Saint-Jean business, several planned locations do not establish the qualifying US role without evidence of authority and delivery resources. A first review should establish the qualifying corporate relationship, the beneficiary’s one continuous qualifying year abroad in the preceding three years, secured physical premises, and a first-year operating plan. The reader must decide whether the plan supports an executive or managerial position within one year rather than merely a busy launch. L-1A time is limited by a seven-year maximum and L-1B time by a five-year maximum, so the proposed sequence should account for prior L stay.
Separate planned scale and actual duties
Explain who handles routine tasks and what the transferee primarily manages or directs. First-line nonprofessional supervision is insufficient by title alone. New-office L-1A specifically requires foreign managerial or executive service; the general L-1 foreign-capacity rule can also include specialized knowledge. Establish the actual continuous foreign year in the relevant three years, excluding US days without treating every trip as a break. Separate a future expansion chart from the transferee’s current and planned duties. Identify who performs sales, administration, technical delivery, and routine supervision, then show the decisions the transferee will make above that work. Hypothetical example: A custom-orthotics distributor plans a US office where local staff handle orders and fittings while the transferee sets supplier strategy, approves budgets, and manages the essential distribution function.
Prove operations and the first-year capacity
Qualifying organizations need the proper relationship and regular, systematic, continuous US and foreign business. US doing business for less than a year is new-office activity, not simply an incorporation date. Sufficient premises are required; L-1A must support the qualifying role within a year, while L-1B needs qualifying knowledge and financial ability to pay and commence business. Initial new-office approval is limited to one year. Build the first-year record around what will be verifiable: premises, capital or operating funds, hiring timetable, customer or supplier activity, and role allocation. The initial new-office period is limited, so the extension decision will turn on evidence of actual operations and continued qualifying organizations, not on a projected organization chart alone. If the operation needs the transferee to perform most routine work indefinitely, reassess whether the proposed classification and staffing plan match.
What else is on your mind?
Does being a business owner or director qualify me for L-1A?What employment history should an L-1 transfer review cover?What makes a new-office L-1A case different?Why does an L-2 spouse’s admission record matter for work?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.