L-1 visa application process involves two steps. First, you will have to file Form I-129 with USCIS. After it has been approved, you can apply for the L-1 visa. The filing fee is $460, which is paid by the U.S company and must be submitted with Form I-129.

The fee is required if it’s your first time to apply for an L-1 visa, want your L-1 visa status extended or want the status of your L-1 visa changed. If you have dependents that are applying for the extension of L-2 visa status or want a change of status to L-2 visa status through USCIS, then you will also have to file Form I-539 whose charges are $370.

For business owners and entrepreneurs interested in expanding their business in the U.S. market, one important question is which U.S. visa is right for them. For entrepreneurs who own their own company and wish to open an office in the United States, the L-1 visa may be a good option.

If you are a business owner, you will need to meet the requirements of an L-1 to get an L-1A manager or executive visa.

There is no quota limit on L-1 visas. An L-1 visa holder can also change to an H-1B visa, though that will likely be subject to the H-1B’s annual limit.

Dependents of an L-1 holder include a spouse and children under the age of 21. These dependents are given an L-2 visa. L-2 visas have limits similar to those of the L-1 visa.

As long as you continue working for one of your company’s branches or its affiliated companies, then you can transfer jobs. However, you should notify the USCIS or the attorney carrying out your paperwork before making a switch.

To work for a different company, you will need to apply for a separate visa. You also cannot work part-time for a different company while on the L-1 visa.

An L-1 visa allows you to:

1. Stay in the U.S. and legally work there for an organization that is a subsidiary, parent, affiliate, or branch of the company which formerly employed you abroad.
2. Move outside and within the United States.
3. Obtain visas for your family – this is for your spouse and children under the age of 21. Your spouse can work in the U.S., and children can still study in U.S. public and private schools. However, your children cannot engage in paid employment in the U.S.
4. Make a permanent residency application (green card) without jeopardizing the status of your L-1 visa.
5. Unlike the H-1B visa that requires you to possess a bachelor’s degree, the L-1 visa has no education requirement.
6. The L-1A allows managers and executives to travel to the U.S. to start a new branch or office where none exists. However, the initial validity period is only 1 year for this route, though extensions are available.
7. You are given a chance to choose the premium processing timeframe in order to get your visa processed in as little as two weeks.
8. When applying for permanent residence (a permanent green card), L-1A holders who are applying for an EB-1C can skip the labor certification process which is normally highly procedural and technical.

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Under regular circumstances, the L-1 processing time ranges between two to five months. However, you can request premium processing to have your visa processed in as little as two weeks.

L-1 premium processing is a service offered by USCIS officials to enable applicants to enjoy faster visa processing. Processing an L-1 visa under premium processing takes at most 15 days, and the applicant is required to pay a fee of $1,440. The fee for the normal L-1 visa application is $460