IN THIS GUIDE · Distinguish family ownership connections from the qualifying company relationship
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
Map the actual owners and control arrangements
Hypothetical example: relatives own separate Canadian and U.S. companies. Identify the actual holdings, rights and legal entities for assessment. Do not describe the companies as affiliates solely because the owners belong to the same family or cooperate commercially.
Explain the proposed management role separately
Identify what the applicant would decide, manage or direct and who performs operational work. A family position or ownership interest does not establish managerial or executive capacity. Include authority retained by other owners and the applicant’s actual personal duties.
Document employment rather than family association
Prepare dated records of the actual foreign employer, duties and relevant employment period. Do not assume years spent helping a family business establish the required qualifying employment. Have the genuine arrangement assessed without converting informal involvement into unsupported employment history. Hypothetical example: a stratospheric-weather-balloon valve manufacturer wants to transfer its Canadian operations director after a shareholder agreement changed the U.S. voting rights. The decision is whether the documents show a qualifying relationship on the filing date and whether the foreign work totals one qualifying year during the three years immediately before the request. L-1A time in the classification is generally limited to seven years; L-1B time is generally limited to five years. Count earlier time before committing to a start date, because a promotion does not erase time already used. It should also identify the actual supervisor and the staff who will perform routine production work.
Review changes in rights before relying on the plan
Identify proposed share transfers, voting changes or role changes and their effective dates. Have the actual qualifying relationship assessed before and after material changes. A future family agreement should not be presented as an effective corporate arrangement until the facts support it.
Prove the qualifying relationship and one continuous year abroad
The organizations need a qualifying parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary relationship and continuing qualifying business in the United States and abroad. An ordinary L-1A may be granted in increments up to a maximum of seven years; a new-office petition is approved for one year initially and must then be extended on evidence of what the office has become. A new US office, based on doing business for less than one year, needs sufficient premises and support for the qualifying role within one year; initial approval is limited to one year. L-1A preparation should describe what happens during those visits and how the full role is primarily managerial or executive, without treating all customer contact as either disqualifying or automatically strategic. The practical decision is whether the proposed role is primarily managerial or executive, or whether it remains hands-on despite senior-sounding language.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.