A Guide to Extending an L1 Visa
The L1 Visa lasts for up to three years but can be extended. Our US Immigration Solicitors receive inquiries about L1 Visa extension applications as once a US company has found the right specialist employee, they invariably want to extend their employee’s L1 Visa beyond the initial three years.
Our US Immigration Solicitors can help your company with L1 Visa applications and extension requests.
US Immigration Solicitors
For US immigration advice call OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Extending an L1 Visa
The rules on extending an L1 Visa depend on the visa type.
- The L1A Visa for managers and executives initially lasts for three years. The visa can be extended for a total of up to seven years
- The L1B Visa for employees with specialist knowledge initially lasts three years but can be extended to up to five years
Either L1 Visa route can lead to US settlement as the L1A and L1B Visas are both dual-intent visas. This makes the L1 Visa popular with US companies and senior and specialist employees as the visa and extension application gives both the employer and employee the time to work out if there is a good fit between business and employee and to see if the employee has a long-term future in the company.
Two-year L1 Visa extension applications
The rules say an L1 Visa extension will only be granted for two years. That’s the case even though an L1A Visa can be extended to a maximum of seven years. Therefore, some sponsored employees may require more than one visa extension application.
When calculating an employee’s stay in the US on the L1 Visa you can exclude time spent outside the US. For example, extended stays overseas in their home country to see family or time spent out of the US on work-related trips.
Applying for an L1 Visa extension
The extension application process is like a first L1 Visa application. The completed I-129 petition for a nonimmigrant worker must be submitted by the employer rather than the employee. A key point is that the petition must be filed before the L1 Visa expires and the correct paperwork must be lodged with the petition.
L1 Visa extension documents include proof the employee or beneficiary has been employed by the company since moving to the US. This could be in the form of a letter detailing the worker’s employment over the previous three years and salary together with information on the job and terms of employment. If the employee wants to say that time spent outside the US should not form part of the five-year or seven-year calculation the employee will need to send details of the time spent outside the US as well as evidence that they were not in the US.
Where an L1 Visa holder has dependants living in the US their visas will need to be extended at the same time by the company filing a Dependant Visa application using the I-539 form. If an application is not made for the dependant, their status will lapse.
When to apply for an L1 Visa extension
The rules say the application cannot be submitted more than six months before the L1 Visa is due to expire. US Immigration Solicitors warn that it is best to arrange for the submission of the L1 Visa extension as soon as the employee is within six months of their departure date. Early submission is best as it can take months for the petition to be processed.
If the L1 Visa expires before the extension petition is determined then the rules provide for an allocation of an extra 240 days after expiry of the L1 Visa. During those 240 days, the employee can still work for the company. If the extension is granted the visa time runs from the grant date and not from the expiry of the 240 days.
If over 240 days go by without a determination of the extension petition, the employee can remain in the US but the sponsored worker cannot work for the company until the extension application is granted. If the petition is refused, the employee will need to leave the US straight away.
Given the delays in L1 Visa extension application processing times our US Immigration Solicitors are often asked how the process can be speeded up. The first thing our Immigration Attorneys recommend is to take specialist US immigration legal advice at least six months before the visa expiry so you can hopefully get the extension application processed without needing to rely on the 240-day rule. If an employee is critical to a company, or a petition has been delayed, an employer can choose to pay for a premium processing service at an additional cost. However, the turnaround time is then reduced to 15 days.
One thing to note, the extension petition will be refused even if the premium service has been used if the company or the employee no longer meets the eligibility criteria for the L1 Visa or if the correct documents are not supplied with the petition.
Blanket Visa Extensions
If your company has several employees on L1 Visas the company has the option of making a blanket extension petition.
A company will qualify for a blanket extension petition if it:
- Has at least 1,000 employees
- Obtained L1 Visas for at least ten employees in the previous 12 months
- Has total sales of at least $25m
How OTS Solicitors can help you with an L1 Visa extension
Our US Immigration Solicitors can check your company still meets the L1 Visa eligibility criteria, prepare the extension petition and check the supporting paperwork. If the employee has dependents, we can also file the necessary forms to extend their US immigration status.
You may also be interested in our blog on Answering Business Owners' FAQ on the L1 Visa.
US Immigration Solicitors
For US immigration advice call OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
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