Read the general business expansion overview
A new-office L-1 petition is approved for one year and depends on evidence that premises have been secured, that the U.S. entity has a qualifying relationship with the Canadian company, and that the business will be able to support a managerial or executive role within the year. An Oromocto fabrication shop opening its first U.S. sales office should assemble the lease, the corporate records and a staffing plan before anyone books a moving truck. Hypothetical example: an industrial-kiln manufacturer wants to send a sales leader to a new U.S. entity before signing for premises. The decision is whether the entity can show a real operating foundation within the first year, not whether incorporation papers exist. A signed lease, realistic budget, staffing plan, ownership proof, and defined executive or managerial duties make the plan testable. The transferee also needs the required qualifying foreign employment record; the new office does not waive that history.
Secure the premises and form the entity first
Hypothetical example: an Oromocto steel-fabrication shop wants its sales director to open a U.S. office to serve contractors across the border. Before filing, the U.S. subsidiary must be incorporated and owned by the Canadian company, and physical premises must be secured, shown by a signed lease for an office or a unit, not a virtual address. The petition must also show that the sales director has worked for the Canadian shop for one continuous year within the past three, in a managerial or executive capacity, and that the Canadian shop will keep operating. Payroll records and the share register carry those points. Show who will perform sales support, administration, and technical work while the transferee manages the launch. A plan that assigns all routine tasks to the proposed executive weakens the claimed role.
Show the capacity to support the role within a year
A new office is approved for one year, and the extension will ask whether the office has grown enough to need a manager or executive. The initial filing should include a business plan with the products to be sold, the target customers, the financial projections, the funds available to the U.S. entity and a staffing plan showing which positions will be hired and when. A sales director who will spend the year personally selling and handling every order looks like an employee performing the work rather than managing it; the plan should show subordinates or a function that will be managed. Keep evidence of premises and funding in forms that predate the filing. Draft leases, informal emails, and an empty bank account leave the first-year operating claim difficult to verify.
Prepare the extension file from day one
At the end of the first year, the extension will examine what actually happened: the office's revenue, the staff hired, the organizational chart and whether the transferee's duties are primarily managerial or executive. Keep a monthly record of hires, contracts and financial results from the first week. If the office develops more slowly than planned, the extension may not be granted, so the Canadian shop should decide in advance how it will respond. The director's spouse is employment-authorized incident to L-2 status; children may study but not work. Time in the U.S. counts toward the seven-year L-1A maximum from the first admission. Use the first year to build payroll, customer, revenue, and organization records for any extension review. The initial approval period is short because the office must demonstrate that it has become operational.
What else is on your mind?
Does being a business owner or director qualify me for L-1A?What employment history should an L-1 transfer review cover?What makes a new-office L-1A case different?Why does an L-2 spouse’s admission record matter for work?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.