IN THIS GUIDE · Get the year abroad and the acquisition paperwork finished before the manager moves
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
Count the qualifying year before promising a date
The transferee must have been employed abroad by a qualifying entity for one continuous year within the three years immediately before the petition. Time spent inside the United States on business visits during that year does not count toward it and, if the visits are extended, can break continuity. The Lake Country company should calculate the anniversary date of the manager's first day, deduct any days worked on US soil, and treat the result as the earliest petition date. Sending him south to oversee the plant on a visitor basis in the meantime is the surest way to push that date further out.
Document the relationship created by the acquisition
A parent-subsidiary relationship exists where the Canadian company owns and controls the US entity, typically through majority ownership or a controlling interest under a shareholder agreement. The petition needs the share purchase agreement, the post-closing capitalisation table, the articles of both companies and evidence that both continue to operate. A letter of intent is not enough; neither is a deal that gives the Lake Country company a minority stake with an option to buy more. If the purchase is staged, the qualifying relationship exists only when control actually passes.
Write the US role as management, not production
L-1A requires duties that are primarily managerial or executive. Managing a packing line by directing hourly workers, setting shifts and stepping in on the floor is supervision of non-professional staff and usually fails. The petition should describe a role that manages other managers or an essential function of the enterprise, sets budgets and hiring, and has authority over policy. If the facility is small, the file should show the organisational layer beneath the manager, such as a production supervisor, a quality lead and an office manager, each with their own staff.
Plan the first petition around the maximum period
An L-1A transferee to an established operation may receive up to three years initially, and can extend to a maximum of seven years in total. The facility purchased in this example has existing staff and operations, so it is not a new office and the one-year new-office limit does not apply. The spouse may accompany on L-2 and is authorised to work incident to status, and children under 21 may study. Build the family's timeline on those facts rather than on an assumption that everything will be renewed indefinitely. Keep a dated travel ledger throughout the assignment, including any time outside the United States that may be relevant to the cap calculation. The seven-year maximum applies to L-1A classification; specialized-knowledge L-1B classification has a five-year maximum. Moving into a managerial role does not make earlier time in L classification disappear, so the company should calculate the available period before promising a promotion or relocation.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.