How startup operators secure the L-1 visa.
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You will build and manage the new US entity, not just be a sole contributor. You have a clear plan to hire US professionals (e.g., founding engineers, sales, or ops). Your primary role is directing the launch and setting strategy, even if you are the first "boot on the ground."
You have (or will have) full authority to hire, fire, and set pay for the US team. You have a credible business plan and sufficient funding (e.g., from VC, seed capital, or the foreign entity) to establish the US operation.
You will make the high-level decisions for the US entity. You will set the US product roadmap, establish the go-to-market strategy, or lead US fundraising, not just execute tasks.
Your new US company (e.g., a Delaware C-Corp) and your foreign entity (e.g., the R&D hub in London or Bangalore) are parent, subsidiary, or affiliates.
You were employed full-time by the foreign start-up in a managerial or executive role for at least one continuous year within the last three years.
A "New Office" L-1A for a start-up founder or individual contributor is often a high-stakes petition, but we have numerous examples of success.
The key is to demonstrate future managerial capacity through a detailed, credible business plan. We focus on the metrics of your launch: your 12-month hiring roadmap, the capital secured for the US entity, and the strategy for US market entry, not just your past product success.
Having a well-funded, successful foreign start-up is helpful, but it cannot and is not a guarantee for the L-1A. The focus must be on the viability of the US business plan and your specific, high-level role in executing it.
You will need a strong, detailed immigration business plan, not a general business plan or normal fundraising deck to suit USCIS requirements,
A "New Office" L-1A for a start-up founder or individual contributor is often a high-stakes petition, but we have numerous examples of success.
The key is to demonstrate future managerial capacity through a detailed, credible business plan. We focus on the metrics of your launch: your 12-month hiring roadmap, the capital secured for the US entity, and the strategy for US market entry, not just your past product success.
Having a well-funded, successful foreign start-up is helpful, but it cannot and is not a guarantee for the L-1A. The focus must be on the viability of the US business plan and your specific, high-level role in executing it.
You will need a strong, detailed immigration business plan, not a general business plan or normal fundraising deck to suit USCIS requirements,
Proving Viability
Your primary challenge is proving your role is managerial from Day 1, even if you have no US team yet. You will need a detailed 12-month hiring plan and expert support letters to prove that your primary duty is to direct the US entity (e.g., hire engineers, lead strategy, secure US customers), not to be the sole individual contributor (e.g., the only coder or salesperson).
With guidance, we help founders frame their role correctly—focusing on their authority to hire, fire, and set budgets, and their strategic responsibilities—to illustrate this future-facing managerial capacity to USCIS.
Establishing the "Viability" of the New Start-up
Your challenge isn't just proving your role, but proving the new US entity itself is a real, bona fide operation that is sufficiently capitalized.
This involves providing a solid business plan, proof of sufficient funding to cover the first year's expenses (including your salary and new hires), and a secured physical office space. Your initial L-1A is for one year, and your extension depends entirely on proving you executed this plan.
We pre-vet our attorneys with strong track records, so you don’t have waste months finding a good one.
We work with Founders to startup operators from Stealth to Series D on L-1 visas.
Work with 15+ years of combined extraordinary visa knowledge. We are confident in your approval.
The L-1 visa for start-ups is typically used when a foreign company opens or expands a related U.S. entity and wants to transfer a key employee to help build the American operation. It is not a special startup-only visa category. It still requires a qualifying relationship between the foreign and U.S. companies, and the transferred employee must qualify as an executive, manager, or specialized knowledge professional under the standard L-1 rules.
Yes. A startup can use the L-1 route if there is already a real foreign operating business and a properly connected U.S. entity such as a parent, subsidiary, branch, or affiliate. USCIS is clear that the L-1 category is for intracompany transfers, so the structure must be genuine and documented. A startup cannot use L-1 just because it wants to launch in the United States without that foreign-to-U.S. company relationship in place.
Yes. A founder or startup executive can qualify for L-1A if the person worked abroad for the related foreign company for at least one continuous year within the previous three years and will come to the U.S. in a genuine executive or managerial role. USCIS does not approve based on founder title alone. The company must show that the foreign employment and the proposed U.S. role both meet the legal standard.
Yes. USCIS allows new-office L-1 petitions, which are often the most relevant route for startups entering the U.S. market. But the burden is higher. The company must show that it has secured sufficient premises, that it is ready to start doing business, and that within one year the U.S. operation will be able to support the executive or managerial role being requested.
The strongest L-1 startup cases usually include proof of the relationship between the foreign and U.S. entities, evidence that the foreign company is actively doing business, documents showing the employee’s one year of qualifying employment abroad, a detailed U.S. business plan, office lease or premises evidence, and a clear explanation of the employee’s foreign and U.S. duties. New-office filings are won on structure and documentation, not on broad business claims.
Yes, in some cases. If the employee has company-specific specialized knowledge, the startup may use L-1B rather than L-1A. This is often relevant where the employee knows the company’s internal product, systems, processes, or technical methods in a way that would be hard to replace quickly in the U.S. market. But USCIS still expects a serious, documented explanation of why that knowledge is truly specialized.
It depends on the category. L-1A managers and executives can stay up to seven years, while L-1B specialized knowledge employees can stay up to five years, subject to the normal approval and extension rules. That is one reason the L-1 route can be especially useful for startups building a longer-term U.S. presence.
90% of Beyond Border's clients are startups with cross border entities and L-1 visa needs. This is a well drilled process for us to advise startups on how to manage cross border operations.
