How An Immigration

Attorney Can Help Ensure Your L-1

Visas Are Approved

In recent years the U.S. government has been reviewing L-1 visa petitions more stringently and rejecting them more often. The rejection rate appears to disproportionately impact Indian workers and executives seeking to come to the U.S. on a L-1A or L-1B visa. Companies seeking L-1 visas for their employees should hire the services of an experienced immigration attorney to help expedite the L-1 process and improve the likelihood of approval.

Overview

What Is A L-1 Visa?• A L-1 visa is a visa allowing multinational corporations with a

presence in the U.S. to bring executives and employees with specialized skills here to work.

• There are two types of L-1 visas – L-1A visas for executives and L-1B visas for skilled employees.

• L-1 visas are typically only used over the short term, but in some cases can be extended up to seven years (L-1B visas are extendable only for up to five years).

• L-1 visa holders can pursue a green card. • L-1 visas are applied for by employers. Employees must have worked

for the employer for one year of the past three to qualify.

Increased ScrutinyIn recent years, the federal government has become more strict about issuing L-1 visas.

•Between 2007 and 2011, rejection rates for L-1A visas grew from 8 percent to 14 percent.•Between 2007 and 2011, rejection rates for L-1B visas grew from 7 percent to 22 percent.•Requests for Evidence (RFEs) have also increased, significantly delaying approval, even for workers who make the cut.

RFE Growth• Requests for Evidence for L-1A visa

petitions grew from 24 percent in 2007 to 51 percent in 2011.

• Requests for Evidence for L-1B visa petitions grew from 17 percent in 2007 to 63 percent in 2011

• RFEs can add months to the immigration process, severely hindering companies that need to place employees in important positions.

Petitions from India Often Rejected

Petitions from India make up a large number of L-1 petitions, so it stands to reasons a growth in denials will affect many. Nevertheless, the growth in the denial rate for Indian petitions seems to have grown disproportionately.

The top countries for L-1 rejection are:•India – 13.4 percent•France – 6.1 percent•China – 3.6 percent•Mexico – 3.6 percent•Germany – 3.2 percent

How L-1 Problems Hurt Your Business

Trouble with L-1 visa approval can negatively impact your company in several ways, including:•Delaying important projects.•Running up labor costs, as companies must hire temporary employees with special skills.•Impacts on quality as key managers with specialized knowledge will be unavailable for projects until their immigrations status is resolved.

How An Attorney Can Help

Immigration attorneys can assist companies seeking L-1 petitions by:•Evaluating employees to see if they’re good candidates for L-1 visas.•Helping to prepare all paperwork for review by immigration officials.•Responding to REFs by immigration officials.

How An Attorney Can Help (contd.)

• Preparing employees for interviews by immigration officials.

• Appealing adverse L-1 decisions.• Taking rejected appeals to court.

About The Law Office of Samira RecobDenver attorney Samira Recob is an experienced immigration attorney who has helped many businesses get L-1, H-1 and other visas for their employees. Recob also specializes in family immigration law, assisting individuals and their loved ones come to the U.S. legally. For a skilled and capable immigration attorney who can help with all aspects of the immigration process, Samira Recob is the right choice. For more information, Visit http://www.recoblaw.com/.