The U.S. subsidiary is the petitioner and pays the Form I-129 fee, any additional L-petition fee and optional premium processing, per the USCIS G-1055 schedule, at filing. Translation and legal costs come earlier; relocation costs should wait until approval.
Fees at filing, relocation after approval
Hypothetical example: the company's finance lead asks for a payment schedule. Certified translations of French corporate records and any legal fees are incurred while the file is assembled. At filing, the U.S.
subsidiary pays the USCIS fees in the current G-1055 schedule: the Form I-129 fee, any additional fee that applies to L petitions, and premium processing if the company chooses faster adjudication. These are not refundable on denial. Record the expense on the U.S.
subsidiary's books since it is the petitioner and beneficiary of the services. Relocation allowances, temporary housing and the director's moving costs are commercial decisions that should be committed only after approval, because a denied petition leaves the company with a director in New Maryland and a U.S. lease it cannot use.
Confirm the fee figures on the USCIS site at filing rather than from an earlier quote. Cost planning should distinguish the petition charges, any expedited processing choice, document retrieval, translations, travel, and relocation commitments. The first review should also identify money that is due before approval versus a business expense that can wait.
Hypothetical example: a harbour-operations manager's employer books a long-term apartment before the petition is ready. The reviewer flags the lease exposure, sets a decision point after the core corporate records are checked, and asks whether a shorter commitment is available. A budget that records cancellation terms is more useful than a single total because it shows the practical consequence of a delay or changed filing strategy.