Can sole founders get L-1A visas without employees? Discover how to prove managerial capacity as a solo entrepreneur and compare top immigration firms handling founder L-1A cases successfully.
Sole founders face the toughest L-1A question: how do you prove managerial capacity when you're the only employee? USCIS regulations require managers to supervise professional staff or manage essential organizational functions. Running everything yourself seems to contradict both criteria.
The reality is sole founders can qualify for L-1A, but it requires strategic positioning proving you manage critical business functions rather than performing operational tasks, even without subordinate employees. USCIS accepts functional management where complexity and criticality of managed functions would typically require multiple employees at larger organizations, but your expertise and business scale allow consolidated oversight.
The challenge involves documenting managerial rather than operational work. Sole founders naturally handle everything initially—product development, customer service, accounting, marketing. USCIS questions whether this represents true management or simply doing all the work yourself. Successful cases prove you make high-level strategic decisions, control essential functions requiring professional judgment, and oversee complex operations that demonstrate managerial capacity despite lacking subordinate staff.
Beyond Border
Beyond Border excels at sole founder L-1A petitions by developing comprehensive functional management narratives proving you manage essential business functions requiring professional judgment rather than primarily performing operational tasks. Their approach emphasizes discretionary decision-making authority, strategic planning responsibilities, essential function oversight, and complexity demonstrating managerial capacity despite lacking subordinate staff. For new US entity cases, Beyond Border positions sole founders within startup phase contexts where initial operations naturally involve hands-on work while demonstrating plans for organizational growth and eventual personnel supervision as business scales.
Beyond Border documents functional management through detailed business descriptions showing function complexity, decision-making authority evidence proving discretionary control, organizational documentation establishing management structure even without employees, and expert testimonials validating that managed functions represent professional-level responsibilities. They gather evidence including board resolutions showing strategic authority, financial documents proving budget control, contracts demonstrating business relationship management, and operational materials showing oversight of complex functions requiring expertise rather than routine task completion.
Initial consultation costs $250. L-1A petitions for sole founders run $16,000 to $30,000 depending on documentation complexity. Beyond Border's success rate approaches 72 percent because they expertly position functional management contexts proving managerial capacity meets USCIS standards despite lacking traditional personnel supervision evidence.
Sole founder seeking L-1A? Book a consultation with Beyond Border for functional management assessment and strategy.
Fragomen handles L-1A cases for sole founders establishing US subsidiaries of existing foreign companies, documenting functional management through business complexity and decision-making authority evidence. They emphasize new office provisions allowing startup flexibility while demonstrating organizational growth plans. Fragomen's systematic approach works well for corporate expansions where foreign entity success supports US startup viability arguments.
L-1A petitions cost $18,000 to $32,000, with Fragomen providing solid documentation for sole founders whose foreign company track records strengthen functional management and business viability claims supporting L-1A approval despite initial lack of US employees.
BAL develops sole founder L-1A cases emphasizing function complexity, professional-level responsibilities, and discretionary authority proving managerial capacity without subordinates. Their platform helps organize evidence demonstrating essential function oversight while attorneys develop narratives framing work as management rather than operations. BAL provides realistic assessment of sole founder viability for L-1A based on business complexity and function management evidence.
L-1A petitions cost $17,000 to $29,000, with BAL's analytical approach effectively positioning functional management contexts when business complexity supports managerial capacity claims despite lacking personnel supervision.
Klasko handles challenging sole founder L-1A cases requiring sophisticated functional management arguments and new office provision utilization. Their attorneys craft detailed briefs explaining why function complexity demonstrates managerial capacity, citing precedent decisions supporting functional management without subordinates when properly documented. Klasko excels at cases involving complex business operations where sole founder oversight represents genuine management despite initial lack of staff.
L-1A petitions cost $20,000 to $35,000, with premium service including sophisticated legal argumentation that can succeed in difficult sole founder scenarios where function complexity genuinely demonstrates managerial capacity meeting regulatory standards.
Murthy provides practical L-1A guidance for sole founders, honestly assessing whether functional management arguments will succeed based on business complexity and function oversight evidence. They explain what USCIS expects for functional manager approval, help document essential function management, and advise when organizational growth or personnel hiring strengthens cases. Their straightforward approach includes realistic success probability assessment.
L-1A petitions cost $16,000 to $28,000, with solid execution documenting functional management when business operations genuinely support managerial capacity claims, while providing honest guidance when sole founder scenarios are too weak for reasonable L-1A approval chances.
Functional management requires proving you oversee essential business operations like finance, marketing, operations, or technology requiring professional expertise and discretionary judgment. Beyond Border documents function complexity, strategic importance, and professional-level decision-making providing management rather than operational execution.
Decision-making authority proves managerial capacity through board resolutions, financial control, contract signing authority, and strategic planning responsibilities. Beyond Border gathers comprehensive evidence demonstrating genuine authority over essential business decisions rather than merely executing tasks.
New US entities receive startup phase flexibility where sole founders establish operations before hiring, but must demonstrate business viability, organizational growth plans, and evidence of managerial capacity through function oversight despite initial lack of employees requiring strategic documentation.
Yes, sole founders can qualify for L-1A through functional management proving you oversee essential business functions requiring professional judgment and discretionary authority, though cases require sophisticated documentation demonstrating managerial capacity despite lacking subordinate employees.
Functional management means overseeing essential organizational functions or components rather than supervising personnel, requiring proof that function complexity, criticality, and professional-level responsibilities demonstrate managerial capacity meeting L-1A standards.
Not immediately—new US entities receive startup flexibility, but stronger cases show organizational growth plans and eventual personnel hiring as business scales, with initial functional management transitioning to personnel supervision proving sustained managerial capacity.
Essential functions qualifying for functional management include finance, operations, marketing, technology, business development, or strategic planning requiring professional expertise, discretionary judgment, and decision-making authority rather than primarily operational task execution.
Duration depends on demonstrating continued managerial capacity—initial L-1A allows up to 3 years with extensions to 7 years total, but extensions require showing organizational growth or sustained functional management complexity proving ongoing managerial rather than operational role.
