L-1 visa issues and its solutions
by KaranI am a L-1 visa holder and my spouse has a L-2 visa. The overseas parent company I work for along with the branch I am now working for was acquired by a US based company. The purchaser is going to keep the overseas company and the US branch I work for intact. My job title and duties along with the location of our branch office will stay the same. However, the new acquirer will be issuing our paychecks and of course have power and control over our US branch. My question is, can I continue to work without informing the USCIS of this change?
The short answer is the L1 holder should definitely inform the USCIS of this substantial change in its employer's corporate structure. The L1 holder will want to apply for an amended L1 Visa. Additionally, depending on the expiration date of the current L-1, he may consider applying to extend his expiration date. He will want to demonstrate that the qualifying relationship between the overseas company and the affiliated US company has not changed despite the acquisition of the overseas parent company and the US affiliate. That was the short answer.
The slightly long answer is as follows. An L1 Visa commonly known as a intracompany transfer visa is a very valuable non-immigrant work visa. The Immigration Act provides that an “alien who within the preceding three years has been employed abroad for one continuous year by a qualifying organization may be admitted temporarily to the United States to be employed by a parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary of that employer in a managerial or executive capacity, or in a position requiring specialized knowledge." 8 C.F.R. §214.2(i) requires a new or amended petition when the “circumstances and conditions in the initial petition have changed." Assuming the relationship between the overseas company operations and the US operations have not changed, it should be emphasized in the application that the current relationship between the overseas relationship with the intracompany transferee's office has not changed. Additionally, the application should be filed immediately.
As mentioned above, the L1 visa is extremely valuable work visa compared to an h1b visa. Generally speaking, the L1A visa is a great platform to eventually to adjust status to an Employment based green card. Additionally, the spouse L-2 visa holder is usually permitted to work upon proper application for a work permit. In contrast, the spouse of an H1B holder (H4 visa) cannot apply to work.