Visas for the United States: the L1 visa

What you should know

The L1 visa , also known as “intracompany transfer” is the visa designed to send personnel from our company in Spain to our subsidiary in the United States.

Unlike what happens with the E2 visa, the worker does not have to be Spanish. He can have any nationality.

The positions that they are going to process can be managerial or specialist.

Unlike what happens with the E2 visa, in this case it is required that in the last 3 years prior to the displacement the worker has worked continuously for the company for a minimum of one year. It is very important to take into account that if that person has been traveling to the United States, the days spent in this country do not count in order to count the total for the year, although they do not interrupt continuity.

A minimum level of English is not required.

This visa must be requested by the American company before USCIS and once this body approves it and grants the I-129, the visa is processed at the United States embassy in Madrid.

You can also request a permit to manage several L1 for several years. This permission is known as a “blanket permit” . If you are interested in processing a blanker permit, do not hesitate to contact us by calling 91 847 87 30 or by email at contacto@visadosempresas.com.

This visa has to be stamped in the passport, so the traveler will have to process an interview at the consular section of the United States Embassy in Madrid. The Barcelona consulate does not process visas.

Visas for the United States. The L1 visa.

Visa duration.

By duration of the visa we have to understand the period during which the visa is valid and therefore we can use it to travel.

In the case of the L1 visa , the duration of the visa will be two years.

Visas for the United States. The L1 visa.

Maximum stay allowed and number of entries and exits.

The maximum stay allowed in the country when one enters with an L1 visa  is 2 years, although the final decision on how long we will be allowed to be in the country will be made by the border control officer who receives us upon arrival and who will stamp on the I-94.

Visas for the United States. The L1 visa.

Can it be extended?

This visa can be extended  for another two years up to a total of seven years.

Later you could try to obtain a green card.

Visas for the United States. The L1 visa.

Processing time

By processing time we have to understand the time it takes for the United States government to manage an L1 visa.

In this case there are two phases.

The first phase, approval by USCIS, can take up to six months, although you can hire a “premium” process that would shorten the management process by around a month.

Once the I-129 has been granted, you must apply for the visa at the United States embassy in Spain.

The average processing time varies depending on the time of year but it can be calculated that it will be around 5 calendar days from the moment the interview is carried out.

The interview, depending on the work that the consular section of visas of the embassy has, can be given to us many months away. It can even happen in the event that, at the time of the request, there are no spaces available and we have to wait.

If the term is extended beyond what would be acceptable for our interests, there are cases in which it is possible to request an urgent interview.

We must take into account that the preparation of the documentation that is necessary to provide with each file is complex and its preparation may require many days, so it is advisable to start processing the L1 visa between 7 and 8 months before the need.

Visas for the United States. The L1 visa.

Processing fees

In this case, it is necessary to differentiate the fee charged by USCIS from the one that will later be charged by the United States embassy for managing the DS-160. In the case of the USCIS fee, it will also depend on whether the premium service is contracted or not. If you want to know the rates in detail, do not hesitate to contact us.