tychos

Hi - i hope someone can help clarify something for me..

We want to move to the US from the UK, and my brother has US citizenship so I have applied for a green card on the I-30 program. This has been processed but I am being told that it may be 7 years before I get a green card (does that sound right??).

So, in the interim I am looking to move over with my company. They say that i have missed the deadlines for a H1-B visa for this year (and so would need to wait until next year for them to apply for me) so i can either wait for that or they can transfer me on an L1 (which seems to be their preference).

So, my (probably dumb) questions are:

1) Am i best to stay in the Uk now and try and get in on a H1B in October 2009, or should I go for the L1 now and transfer over now (which is obviously what we would prefer)

2) If I do come in with a L1, does this mean that I cannot look for another job at some stage in the future if needed, as the L1 is only applicable to my current company?

3) If I come in on an L1, can my company change this to a H1B next year?

4) With the L1 and H1B, am i correct in thinking that whatever job role I come over on, I have to stay in that particular role and I cannot change roles/get promoted? What if I do change roles - will the US govt throw us out of the country ?

5) If I get a L1, can my wife work in the US?

Any advice/guidance/suggestions would be much appreciated. Also, if there is anything else I have forgotten to think about in relation to the H1B and L1 then please let me know!

Thanks for your help

ladyofthelake

I've answered some of the questions above as best I can.

MsElui

1) Am i best to stay in the Uk now and try and get in on a H1B in October 2009, or should I go for the L1 now and transfer over now (which is obviously what we would prefer) Get the L1 now - its easier to get the green card on that than the H1. also you may not be lucky enough to get the H1 as its always oversubscribed and they do a lottery

2) If I do come in with a L1, does this mean that I cannot look for another job at some stage in the future if needed, as the L1 is only applicable to my current company? yes - you are tied to that company until they will sponsor/complete your greencard - try and get them to write down in your contract that they will apply for this within a year of going so they cant sit on it forever.

3) If I come in on an L1, can my company change this to a H1B next year?
i wouldnt bother - i think L1 is better. i guess its possible IF you win the lottery for a H1 - which is no certainty

4) With the L1 and H1B, am i correct in thinking that whatever job role I come over on, I have to stay in that particular role and I cannot change roles/get promoted? What if I do change roles - will the US govt throw us out of the country ? Change of role within the company isnt an issue (unless you took the janitors job -then renewal would be an issue) my husband has been here on his l1a less than a year and has already been promoted.

5) If I get a L1, can my wife work in the US? yes- once she arrives in the us she applies for EAD and it should arrive in less than 90 days (can be much faster - especially if NOT applying electronically) and she is good to go. NO work for her on H visa at all.

Any advice/guidance/suggestions would be much appreciated. Also, if there is anything else I have forgotten to think about in relation to the H1B and L1 then please let me know!
try and get the L1A rather than the L1B as this means you dont have to go through the labour certification stage for the visa and again for the green card saving time and money. Might not be eligible for it but definatly look.

fatbrit

They're currently processing this category from applications submitted over a decade ago. Of course, we don't know how many are in the line in front of you....so nobody can fully predict your wait time. But 7 years may be optimistic.

Last time a comprehensive immigration bill came up on the table, there was talk of removing this category all together. The bill didn't go through -- but will no doubt resurface after the elections. No idea what will happen to those already in the line if they remove the category, but they could well be SOL.

taffie77

My husband will be getting an L1 visa for his job transfer, and I will be getting an L2. Once resident, I will be able to start the process for the EAD (work permit).

Socal Local

For a transfer with your existing company the L1 is definitely a better bet, especially with the lottery that H1-B has become. You do need to have worked for them for at least a year in the UK though.

The only real downside is being completely tied to the one employer until you get a green card so I would strongly recommend discussing this and getting a written agreement if possible, if you are making a permanent move.

tychos

Thank you everyone for all your replies. It looks like the L1 is the way to go for me

With regards to my other question regarding the waiting times for my I-130 to complete, does anyone know (1) if I come over on a L1, can I get my company to apply for a green card for me in addition for me applying via the I-130 route, and (2) what the approximate wait times for getting a green card that is company sponsored are?

Many thanks once again.....

meauxna

The wait time you have from your brother's petition I-130 is not the processing time for the I-130 itself. The approval of I-130 makes you eligible for a visa number; there is an annual quota of them for your relative class (family based/fourth). You are waiting for your turn to get a slice of that pie. See: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bu...etin_4231.html

Your company can sponsor you via the employment route, but the length of time (other than being completely impossible to guess at) will be partially dependant on what type of L-1 you get, L-1A or L-1B.

It doesn't hurt to have multiple channels to the green card open for you.

tychos

Thanks for that... I think I understand now !

So once my I-130 has been processed and I am given a number (which looking at the web seems to vary between 2 and 14 years!), does that mean that I can extend a L1 visa until my GC is issued, or would a L1 still be limited to 5 years after which time i would have to leave the country?

And I read from your post that i can leave the I-130 petition going and also get my company to apply for a GC for me at the same time ? If thats the case I am (pleasantly) amazed

Socal Local

For a company sponsored green card, it depends what employment based category you fall into (EB1, EB2 or EB3). If you have an L1-A visa it is likely to be EB1-C, for which past processing times have typically been 12-18 months. If you have an L1-B visa you would need to see whether the job was classed as EB2 or EB3 and there is then an extra step required in the the green card application process (labor certification). Timelines for these categories are dependant on visa availability as well as just processing time so are even more difficult to predict but you are probably looking at a ball park of 3-5 years.

As meauxna said, it is impossible to say how long it will take for sure - the dates quoted for processing times and visa availability move both forwards and backwards fairly frequently and even two applications filed on the same day in the same category can end up being approved months apart, but this might give you a rough idea based on what is happening now.

tychos

Thats great, thanks.

So it looks like my best bet is to get an L1-A (i am a manager at my present company) and get over with this. Once I am over I can get my company to sponsor me for a green card (agreed with them before I come over) and then wait hopefully say 2 years to get a GC and then I am all set.....

hey, it all sounds so easy now

meauxna

heheh.. easy!

then you've got your brother's petition running in the background, and if your company drops dead or something, you've at least held your place in that long line.
This is one of the reasons the wait times look so long and then speed up, or vice versa.. people like you may get a GC another way, or change their minds and drop out of the line. If/when you do drop out, things will speed up for the people behind you.

The L-1 and brother petition are completely unrelated. Just having a petition filed by your brother does not give you any permission to stay in the US. and, having a petition on file doesn't change anything about the L-1 rules or terms.