DOS Cable on L-1 Visa for Short-term Assignments
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POSTS
SPECIAL EMBASSY PROGRAM
JAKARTA POUCH
SURABAYA POUCH
BUJUMBURA POUCH
UNCLAS STATE 095200
VISAS FOR CONSULS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS
Subject: L-1 Visas For Employees Coming For Short Term Assignments
Ref: 9 FAM 41.54 Note 8.5
1. It has recently come to the Visa Office's attention that some posts have misinterpreted the Ref Note to mean that L applicants cannot come to the U.S. on an L to take up short term assignments. VO did not intend to preclude short term assignments on L status. A discussion and the revised note follows.
2. Ref Note explains that while an L visa applicant must be employed by the company on a full-time basis, the alien does not have to be engaged on a full-time basis in the U.S., and may divide work between the U.S. and another country. It also says that a significant portion of the alien's time must be spent on productive employment in the U.S. of an L nature.
3. This note was written principally to address the problem which mainly arose in the context of Mexican "maquiladoras", where alien commuters wanted to live in the U.S., work in Mexico, and justify L status by occasionally engaging in business activities in the U.S. Since an alien's principal intent must be consistent with status, an alien whose principal place of residence was the U.S. but who only worked in the U.S. on a part- time or intermittent basis would not qualify for L status.
4. On the other hand, an alien who is principally employed out of the U.S. and resides out of the U.S. may receive an L visa for the purpose of coming to work on a short term basis. For example, an alien employed in the PRC may receive an L visa for the purpose of coming to the U.S. for one or two week intervals every several months, provided that the work is of L caliber. The key issue is whether the alien's principal intent is consistent with L status, not the amount of time spent in the U.S.
5. The revised note reads as follows:
In general, the intent of the L-1 classification is the intracompany transfer to the United States of full-time, executive, management, or specialized knowledge personnel. However, while full-time employment of the beneficiary is anticipated, INA 101(a)(15)(L) does not require that the beneficiary perform full-time services within the United States. An executive of a company with branch offices in Canada and the United States, for example, could divide normal work hours between those offices and still qualify for an L-1 visa. The alien's principal purpose while in the U.S., however, must be consistent with L status. Therefore, if an alien lived in the U.S. and commuted to employment in Canada or Mexico, and only occasionally worked in the U.S., the alien would normally not qualify for L-1 status since the principal purpose for being in the U.S. would not relate to l employment. An alien who lived in Canada and came to the U.S. occasionally to work as an executive for the U.S. branch operation, however, would normally qualify for L-1 status, since that alien's principal purpose for coming to the U.S. would be consistent with L classification.
Talbott