L1, L2 Visa

Hi Friends,

what should be the best answer for this question:
"Why can’t your company’s U.S. team member do this work?"

Thanks.

While filling DS-160 is there any option to specify if its L-1B blanket visa or L-1B individual visa. I completed my DS-160 it didnt ask me anywhere, and now i am worried as my previous L-1B blanket got denied and i don’t want this to show as blanket visa.

Hi All,

Need your guidance and expertise for my situation.
I am working in a reputed employer who has filed my H1B and have valid approved H1B petition till sep 2021. I was in USA for almost 3.5 yrs( including vacation months) and moved back to india last year in april 2019 due to family situations. I didnt stamp my petition after coming to india as i moved back from deputation of the USA project  and joined other project in india.
Now, i have a situation where my husband has got a opportunity for filing L1, its not possible for me to go in H1B as i dont get project and again, amendment, stamping would all min take a 6 months to 1 year.Hence, planning for applying L2 from his company end and travel with him to USA.

Please answer/guide me with below queries hampeing me to take a decision.

1. Can i go to L2 stamping while having approved petition which is not stamped yet in passport. if so, whats the probability of getting L2 visa.
2. Do i need to inform my employer that i am going for L2 visa? what will happen to my H1B if i go for L2 stamping.
3. If i leave the job , then my organization will the h1b petition. if my organization revokes the petition , will i still be eligible for COS from L2 to H1 or CAP exempt if i find another employer. 

Please guide me if anyone had / heard similar experiences . Your guidance will help me in taking decisions.

Best Regards,
JK

I have an L1B blanket interview on 21 Jan.
My company applied for me and not for my dependents.

why you are not travelling with family?

can you help me how to justify this question.

Thanks in advance

My L1B blanket was rejected “Not clearly approvable” in 2019,

Waited for a year and applied for “L1A” blanket in 2020, same was rejected stating “Not clearly approvable”

the counselor went through L1B rejection reason even before she started off with the L1A interview. I felt she already made up her mind not to approve especially after going through it.

Can you please suggest what would be the next ideal step to get a US visa :
1)Should I reapply for L1A and what is earliest that I can reapply? Is there any cooling period before we apply (Or)
2) should I apply for L1 individual

please help in this regards

My L1A (individual) visa was approved in Jan 2020. Let me give some my background of my application.
 
After doing some research (esp. on this forum) I realized that I had been probably not a very unique thing which has happened to me and many more are in the same boat as mine.

Timeline:

• L1(A) Blanket Visa : 10th September, 2019
Status: Rejected
• Filed for L1(A) Individual in premium processing: 27th September, 2019
• Received RFE on 5th October
• Filed response to RFE on 28th December
• Received approval on the petition : 5th January, 2020

Blanket experience:

I won’t spent time on explaining the things to be done for Biometrics and Interview day. There are lot of detailed response already on this forum.

I will stick to the questions and the fateful deal breaker question as well:-

Question: What is current experience with your current Organisation?
Answer: XX years
 
Question: What is your current compensation?
Answer: Told him YYYY dollars annually which is roughly equal to YYYY lacs per annum in INR
 
Question: What will be your future compensation?
Answer: Told (upside of 150K)
 
Question: What is your current Role?
Answer: YYYY told the managerial position I had in my current firm – Just the name
 
Question: What is future Role?
Answer: Told the fill Job title which again had a manager some where
 
Question: Explain your role in US?
Answer: I explained my role as functional manager and details as per the petition and Attorney’s guidance
 
Question: A follow up question on my roles & responsibilities
Answer: Explained
 
It took some time for the visa officer to understand the exact role and then nodded by saying (I understand!)
 
Question: How many direct reportees you will have in US?
Answer: It will be a functional manager role and I won’t be having any direct reportees
 
The Visa officer kept on typing post this question and it took him almost a minute after which he pulled out a blue slip and marked the section. He then stamped all the three copies of I-129s with “Visa not clearly approvable”. He passed me my passports and 2 copies of the stamped I-129s back. While passing back the slip, he told me that this category of visa is heavily scrutinized and asked me to show this slip to the HR and they can put me for a different class of Visa. Good day!

I think not having direct reportee didn’t go very well with my job title and hence given a blue slip

Now I have the petition approved from USCIS and waiting for the documents.

Interview scheduled for 3rd March.

I just wanted to check if the direct reportee question will come again even with an approved petition and any tips of dealing with this situation.

Thanks in advance to all the active contributors.

Thanks all the users of immihelp, It was really helpful for me to get a clear cut ideas throughout the process of my visa

Petition type : L1B Individual
Processing Mode : Premium

Time Lines

Petition filed with USCIS : 29-Aug-2019
RFE Received : 09-Sep-2019
RFE Responded : 08-Nov-2019
Case Approved : 21-Nov-2019
I-797B Received : 10-Dec-2019

Biometrics at Chennai : 06-Jan-2020 / 09:15 (You can get there early as well)
Consulate Interview : 07-Jan-2020 / 09:15 (Just reach 15 minutes before the appointment time, No waiting areas near the consulate)

Administrative Processing : 07-Jan-2020
Issued : 08-Jan-2020
Passport has left the consulate and is ready for deliver : 09-Jan-2020
Passport ready for pickup : 10-Jan-2020

Consular officer was a lady

Me : Good Morning Mam !!
VO : Good Morning Sir, How are you doing?. Just had over your passport

Me : Here is it mam
VO : This is for H1B Right??

Me : No Mam, This is for L1B (Individual). Do you want to see the I-797 ??
VO : Ha Okay, This is for L1B. Not required.

VO : SO where will you be travelling to US?
Me : Spring Texas

VO : For how long are you with your organization
Me : To be precise, 2 Years and 4 months.

VO : What is your proposed salary is US?
Me : It is YYYY XX USD per year

VO : How long is your intent of stay in US?
Me : 2 Years

VO : What will you be doing in US?
Me : Explained my specialization in one sentence.

VO : Sir, your visa is approved. Have a great time in US
Me : Thank you mam, Thanks a lot

All the time VO vas typing. Just had some general questions. I hope that for individual application there is no much of scrutinization in US consulate since it was already approved by USCIS. One important note is b genuine in DS-160 and there should not be any mismatch between DS-160 & form 129

I will be travelling next week to US. Prayers and hope that everyone gets the VISA in whichever category you are looking.

If you have any queries, I am always ready to help.

This forum has been extremely useful while preparing for the interview as it covers all possible questions. Ensure to read as many experiences on site since there is a lot to learn and practice through these questions.

Tips:
Read your documents at-least 10 times and practice the questions.
Wear smile and answer questions in simple English and confidently.
Keep calm, do not stress yourself. Give it your best shot so ensure to stay fresh and active.

My Bio-metric and visa interview was on the same day in Chennai at 8 and 10:45 resp.

Bio-metrics was 10 minutes work and was out by 8:10. You can carry your cellphones along as it would be easy to book cab and all.
Went back to the hotel to relax for a while before the interview.

Visa interview :
Do not go early since they do not allow before the scheduled time and it is tough to wait on the road. Reach only 15-20 minutes in advance.
Do not carry mobiles, people were struggling to keep in locker, carry documents in transparent folder and ensuring it is well organized.
I was with my wife and once we got in had to go through the security check.
In the next area, my wife was asked to sit and since I was the primary applicant, I was asked to sort your documents - 3 sets of I-129S, I-797, Demand draft (Write name and passport at the back) and appointment confirmation letter which was stamped at Bio-metrics.
There will be a person who checks your documents sequence, passport & DD, puts them in a rubber band and ask you move to next building on the right which the main interview building.
In the next queue, had to submit the DD in counter 14. Ensure to collect receipts and then move to 15 or 16 for bio-metric validation for all applicants.
Finally, it is the interview queue. Mostly you will be able to hear the other interviews but its better to stay relax and refresh your bullet points.
Below is the conversation which at-least went for 10-15 minutes.

VO - Can I have the passport and documents
Me - Gave the passport and set of documents in rubber-band.

VO - Who is your petitioner?
Me - Answered

VO - How long you have been working with current company?
Me - 9.5 Years

VO - Have you ever applied for L1 before?
No

VO - Who will be your client?
Answered

VO - Exact location location where you will be travelling?
Answered

VO - Expected salary in US?
Answered

VO - How many direct reportees in US?
Answered 5 as per Org Chart.

VO - At what level will be direct reportees?
Answered as per their designation

VO - What is their educational background?
All are university graduates, mostly Bachelors in technology

VO - Do they have direct reportees?
Answered as since our delivery works as onshore offshore model, they have team in India whom they handle and manage the work.

VO - How many people in total will you manage including offshore?
Answered 30

VO - Whom would you report to and his designation?
Answered - follow up question was on 2 level hierarchy

VO - What is the process to hire and fire people in your organization?
Explained the process.

To my wife - What is your highest level of education?
She Answered

She took a long time typing something on the computer and then separates the set and says visa is approved. Big relief on hearing that. I would again reinforce be clear with what you say and should be inline with the documents submitted. Practice and having mock interviews is the key.

Please guide me what is the best way to answer questions like this in visa interview:

"If your team size is x, why are you chosen to go to USA. Why can't others go?"

Please provide your suggestions. I have also prepared one answer, but don't know if there are any red flags in it. My answer is: I am working with the team for 2.5 years. Other team members joined later than me and some of them have already left the team. So there is no one in my team with this much experience and expertise on this particular tool as me.

Firstly, thanks to all the folks who have contributed to this forum. Extremely helpful. I've been following this forum for more than 3-4 months since my company was processing for my L1-A and this forum has been of great support.

My Profile:
Senior Management Professional with a Fortune 500 IT Services Company with 15 years of experience in various management positions inclusive of 10 years of onsite (USA) experience.

VAC/Biometrics:
Was on the same day (6th) at 8:00AM - and Chennai VAC was swift. I went in by 7:45, was asked to wait in a line, and sharply by 8:00 I was at the window scanning my fingerprints and by 8:15 - I was out.

Pro Tip:
1) They allow cellphones (as long as you don't operate it / keep it silent)
2) If your biometrics and interview are on the same day, and you got time to kill - do not go to the consulate. Chill out at a good restaurant, eat some nice food have their filter coffee.

PAI:
Appointment was at 10:45AM, so I arrived by 10:30. Waited in line for about 20-25 minutes before being let in. L1 visa applicants are required to arrange their documents in an order specified there, and the designated support personnel would help verify and keep it in order for next steps. (I-129S three copies, I-797 three copies, DD (if you're carrying) and passport.

Once done, they direct you to a window to verify your fingerprints/biometrics again. Easy 5 minute process. Then you move into cashier window for submitting the payments (DD or cards). Please make sure you get the receipts.

Enter long queues. Firstly, hated the experience of having to listen to public interviews, you could hear almost every interview at every counter in the hall. Heard and saw lot of rejections for all kinds of visas.

My experience:
Q: State your name please.
 - stated -

Q: Who's your petitioner?
 - stated -

Q: How many years have you been with this company?
 - stated -

Q: What visa are you applying for?
  L1-A

Q: Have you been on an L1 before?
  Yes, had an L1-B before.

Q: Do you still have an L1-B valid?
  No.

Q: When was the last time you visited US?
  2017

Q: Was it on L1-B?
  No
    Q: How many months were you there?
       6 months.

Q: How many reportees?
   In US?
      Q: Yes.
        - stated -

Q: What do they do?
 - stated -

Q: What's their job title?
 - stated - (mix of managers, analysts and consultants)
    Q: How many reportees do they have?
        None.
          Q: Why don't they have direct reportees?
               Our company operates in a onsite offshore model, so we essentially have leads/managers onshore, and work with offshore team to get the delivery done.

Q: How many reportees in India?
 - stated -

Q: What do they do?
 - stated - (mix of developers, analysts, sr. developers and leads)

Q: Who do you report to and who do they report to (chain of command up until CEO)?
 - stated - (she kept asking who do they report to until I reached CEO, and was also asking how the responsibility is split)

Q: Single or married?
   Married.

Q: Why is your wife not here with you?
   Personal Reasons.

Q: What would be your salary in US?
 - stated - (>$120k)

Your visa is approved. Three stamped I-129s, she kept one, and handed two over to me.

Pro Tips:
1) Firstly, dress well, and wear a smile.
2) Use simple english and assertive language to answer questions.
3) Practice your questions (tons of experiences in this forum to go through)
4) Cellphones are obviously not allowed inside, but there is a counter outside that safeguards cellphones. So, maybe give it a try? (I didn't carry one)
5) Wishing you the best!