San Antonio L1B Visa Lawyer

1. Live in the USA

With the L1B visa you and your immediate family will be able to legally live in the USA. Your immediate family includes your spouse and your unmarried children under the age of 21.

2. Work in the USA

The L1B will authorize you to work in the USA. Your spouse will be eligible to get a work permit. Your spouse’s work permit allows your spouse to legally work for any employer in the USA.

3. Public Education

Your children will have access to schools in the USA, everything from pre-kinder to colleges and universities without needing a Student Visa.

4. Social Security Number & Driver’s License

You and your spouse will be able to get Social Security Numbers and will be eligible to apply for US Driver’s Licenses.

The benefits of the L1B Visa are as follows:

There are 7 main requirements to qualify for the L1B Visa:

1. Foreign Company

There must be a company outside the US (Foreign Company), currently operating, where the applicant has been employed.

2. US Company

There must be a company in the USA (US Company), currently operating or in the process of being established, where the applicant plans to be employed.

3. Same Corporate Group

The same person(s) or corporate group must own and control both the US Company and Foreign Company. Some examples of being part of the same corporate group include:

• The same person(s) owns the Foreign Company and US Company,

• The US Company owns the Foreign Company as a subsidiary or vice versa,

• A corporate group owns both companies, and

• The same person(s) own a controlling interest in both companies.

4. Work at Foreign Company

The applicant must have worked with the Foreign Company as a key employee for at least 1 whole continuous year during:

• The last 3 years before applying for the L1B Visa, or

• If the applicant is already in the US working for the US Company with another kind of visa, during the last 3 years before starting work for the US Company.

5. Work at US Company

The L1B applicant must plan to work as a key employee with the US Company.

6. Physical Location

The US Company is required to have a physical location where the applicant will work in the USA, such as an office, a factory, a store, etc.

7. Key Employee with Specialized Knowledge

To qualify for the L1B, the applicant should possess at least one of the following:

a. A skillset valuable to the US Company that distinguishes him/her from other employees and makes them difficult to replace; or

b. A high level of expertise and familiarity with the company’s services, management, or products that was gained through work experience.

The L1B Visa application is a two-step process:

L1B Document Checklist

Once you start the process, the first thing our immigration attorney will do is provide you with a very detailed checklist of the documents needed to prepare your L1B Visa application. This checklist is custom made to your situation and therefore very important because it spells out exactly what will be needed from you to complete the application.

Application #1 – USCIS

Once you provide us with the requested documents, the immigration lawyer will prepare Application #1 for the L1B. This application is submitted to USCIS. On the average, the review process can take anywhere from 2 weeks with Premium Processing to 4 months without Premium Processing. Once USCIS approves Application #1, we then move on to Application #2.

Application #2 – US Consulate

The immigration attorney will prepare Application #2, which will be presented at a US Consulate in your home country. This step includes an interview by a US Consular Officer. Upon being approved, the L1B Visa is stamped onto the applicant’s passport immediately after the interview.

L1B Interview Preparation

Prior to the applicant’s L1B interview at the US Consulate (Application #2), you will have an interview preparation session with the immigration attorney to help guide you. This preparation will make you feel a lot more comfortable during your interview.

The L1B Visa is issued for 3 years and can be renewed for 2 more years. You can be on an L1B work visa for a maximum of 5 years.