The petitioning employer files Form I-129 and pays the fees set in the USCIS G-1055 fee schedule, including any fraud-prevention or premium-processing amounts that apply. Confirm the current figures and which entity the accountant records the expense against.
Budget from the fee schedule and the corporate books
Hypothetical example: the freight company's controller asks whether the Canadian parent or the U.S. subsidiary should pay the petition costs. The petitioner is the U.S. employer that will use the manager's services, and the filing fees are those in the current G-1055 schedule for Form I-129, together with any additional fee that applies to L petitions and the optional premium-processing fee. Record which entity pays, because the expense belongs on the books of the company that benefits. Beyond government fees, expect costs for certified translations of French corporate records, for obtaining certified register extracts, and for the manager's relocation, which is a commercial decision rather than an immigration requirement. Do not let the manager personally pay the petition fee to speed things up; the employer is the petitioner and the arrangement should reflect that.
Hypothetical example: a greenhouse-operations vice president is transferred after the companies budget only the petition fee. The finance team should list the current filing charge, any fraud-prevention or supplemental fee that applies to the petitioner, optional expedited processing, visa fees where nationality requires a visa, dependent filing costs, translations, and relocation expenses. The relevant fee schedule and the entity's petition history settle the government-cost question; a generic online total does not. Decide who bears each business expense before the employee travels, especially where an extension or a dependent application will be needed later. Keep invoices with the case record so a future renewal can distinguish government costs from ordinary corporate travel spending.