IN THIS GUIDE · Transferring into a branch rather than a subsidiary, and which document proves it
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
A branch qualifies, and the proof looks different from a subsidiary's
The qualifying relationship for L-1 can be parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate. A branch is the same legal person operating in another country, so there are no share certificates to produce and no ownership percentage to calculate. The evidence is registration in the state where the branch operates, tax registrations, a lease or premises documentation, bank accounts opened in the branch's name and the internal accounting that treats it as a distinct operating unit. Companies that chose a branch for tax simplicity are sometimes surprised that the immigration file needs more paper rather than less, because existence has to be shown by activity instead of by a corporate chart. Choose the corporate form for commercial reasons, then preserve the documents that prove its relationship. A diagram should show ownership and control without requiring the reader to infer either.
Both entities must be actively doing business, not merely registered
The requirement is that the qualifying organization is doing business as an employer in the United States and in at least one other country for the duration of the stay. Doing business means the regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods or services. A branch registration certificate proves registration. Customer contracts, invoices issued and paid, a payroll register, a signed lease and evidence of operations show business. On the Canadian side the same logic applies in reverse: if the Saint-Germain brokerage were to wind down its domestic operation after the transfer, the qualifying organization requirement would be at risk, because L-1 assumes an ongoing operation abroad. Match each claimed business activity with dated operational evidence such as invoices, payroll, customers, or contracts. Registration alone does not demonstrate the active employer required for the category.
The year abroad is counted precisely, and the counting has traps
Yannick needs one continuous year of full-time employment with the qualifying organization within the three years preceding the petition. Continuous means without a break in the employment relationship, and the year must be spent abroad, so periods he spent physically working in the United States for the company do not count toward it and instead extend the lookback. Brief business trips and vacation do not break continuity. Employment through a staffing agency, or with a company acquired later whose ownership link post-dates the work, needs to be examined rather than assumed. Payroll records, tax slips and dated employment letters are the evidence. Build the employment chronology from payroll and personnel records, not reconstructed memories. Note any leave, break, or role change that could affect the qualifying period.
Managerial capacity is a duties test, not a headcount test
L-1A requires that the person will act primarily in a managerial or executive capacity. That means directing the organization or a department, function or subdivision; supervising and controlling the work of other supervisory, professional or managerial employees, or managing an essential function at a senior level; and exercising discretion over day-to-day operations. Running a small desk does not disqualify a manager, but a person whose actual day consists of booking loads and calling carriers is a first-line supervisor of non-professional staff, which the statute treats differently. The petition should set out an organizational structure, describe who handles operational execution, and allocate the applicant's time honestly. Identify which staff perform the routine work and which decisions remain with the transferee. This is especially important when a small team makes a managerial title look broader than it is.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.