IN THIS GUIDE · Distinguish a new business location from the L new-office analysis
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
Identify the organization behind the expansion
Hypothetical example: a company already providing goods or services in the United States leases an additional location. Establish which entity operates the new site and its relevant business history. Do not call the transfer a new-office case solely because the applicant would lead the new location.
Document actual business activity rather than incorporation alone
The L new-office definition concerns an organization doing business in the United States for less than one year. Have the applicable organization and timeline assessed using actual operations. Incorporation, a lease or an internal launch announcement alone does not explain when the relevant business began providing goods or services.
Explain the management role at the proposed site
Describe actual authority, staffing support and the applicant’s personal operational duties. An expansion may involve substantial execution work; explain it rather than assuming the location manager title establishes L-1A capacity. The appropriate role and evidence requirements depend on the actual case. The first filing also requires a realistic treatment of duration: an L-1A stay is subject to a seven-year maximum, even when a business expansion changes shape. Hypothetical example: a company that manufactures precision seed-sorting equipment assigns its operations director to build a U.S. distribution team. Board resolutions, reporting lines, job descriptions, and a hiring timetable show whether the director will lead managers or professionals, or instead install machines and make routine sales calls. The decision is whether the proposed work remains primarily managerial or executive throughout the requested period. The chart is most persuasive when it matches payroll records, signed contracts, and the proposed reporting structure as it will operate.
Use the correct evidentiary framework
If the new-office provisions apply, specific requirements include the foreign managerial or executive employment and evidence that the intended operation will support the qualifying role within one year of approval. If they do not apply, do not assume a new location creates that special first-year framework. Have the classification reviewed before building the filing.
Prove the qualifying relationship and one continuous year abroad
A qualifying relationship of parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate is only half of the corporate requirement. Identify the personnel or essential function managed, the applicant’s discretion and who performs routine work. The U.S. position should reveal who the transferee will supervise, what level of authority they hold, which budgets or functions they direct, and how operational work will be performed by others. The regulation permits reassignment during authorized stay to an organization listed in the approved blanket when the employee performs virtually the same duties. The qualifying group must conduct regular, systematic and continuous business in the US and at least one other country. Sign the facility lease second, because a new-office petition needs secured physical premises, not a letter of intent. A first review should map the foreign-service dates, ownership chain, proposed U.S. role, and people or functions each applicant will direct.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.