L1, L2 Visa

The experiences shared on this site were helpful in guiding me through the process. Hope my experience is useful to the community as well.

I had my biometric appointment on 10th May in Mumbai. I reached half an hour late because of standstill traffic due to an accident on the WEH. I was worried I might not be let in, so I called the call center (got the number from the appointment portal) and the executive told me to speak to the staff at the VAC, and that usually such requests are accepted. Luckily, no one at the VAC asked any questions about me being late, and once I reached, I was done with the process in all of 10 mins.

My consulate appointment was today, 15th May, at 8:30 AM. I reached at 8 AM and found that there were multiple queues - one for 8:15 appointment, another for 8:30 appointment, and finally, behind a sort of barricade, people with other time slots waited. There didn't seem to be much merit in arriving half an hour early. Each queue moved exactly at the appointment time. The following steps followed:
- Passport and DS-160 verification
- Security check

Since I was applying for a L1-B blanket, I was asked to step aside from the main queue and arrange my documents in a particular order (I-727, I-129, DD (if available), DS-160, passport). This was a bit chaotic for me - there was one person barking out instructions, no other staff to assist. When I handed over the documents, he handed some back, only to demand something back again (he had handed back one of the I-727 copies by mistake, if I remember correctly). All of this while there was a fan running at full speed nearby and keeping the documents from flying was proving to be a challenge! My recommendation would be to keep those documents in order beforehand; I believe this is standard practice, and it would help you save some time.

FYI all of the above happen in non-air conditioned areas. Only after this you enter the main visa application building, which is air conditioned.

Next came the Fraud prevention fee payment and the fingerprint verification - routine.

Finally you join the line for the interview. I probably had a 20 min wait before my turn.

[VO]: Your petitioner is ... *mispronounced the name of my company*
[Me]: Told her the name of the company

[VO]: So the company must be into data analytics?
[Me]: <told her the exact nature of work that the firm is involved in - single sentence>

[VO]: Have you been to the US before on a similar visa?
[Me]: No

[VO]: So this is the first time you're applying for a L1 visa?
[Me]: Yes

[VO]: Have you been to the US before?
[Me]: Yes, <mentioned when - this was on a B1/B2>

[VO]: For how many days?
[Me]: <mentioned number of days>

[VO]: Which city will you be going to?
[Me]: <mentioned city, state>

[VO]: What will your salary be?
[Me]: <mentioned annual salary, and the fact that accommodation was also provided for>

[VO]: How long have you been working with this company?
[Me]: <mentioned duration - under 3 years for reference>

[VO]: Could you please tell me what work you will be doing in US?
[Me]: <This is an expected question, so I had a prepared answer>

I was cut-off mid-way with another question.

[VO]: Okay, but what will you specifically do in these projects?
[Me]: <I was caught off-guard because I thought I was explaining just that, but I recovered quickly and explained in one crisp sentences that I am a part of abc team, and will be working with stakeholder1 and stakeholder2 to define the workflow of project xyz>

[VO]: And no one else in your team can do this?
[Me]: No. I have x members in my team each with their own areas of specialization. The technology is proprietary to the firm, so an outsider would require significant training.

2 minutes of silence while she typed on the keyboard and chatted with her colleague (speaker was muted). She started stamping the three sets of documents, and eventually un-muted the speaker.

[VO]: Your petition is approved. <Handed me 2 copies> Please keep one copy and provide the other copy to your HR. Have a nice day!

In hindsight, I feel like the interviewer intended to throw me off-guard and to dig through the rehearsed answer and test the validity of my claims. Sign of an expert interviewer, I guess. These are the situations you want to prepare for. I feel like I could have given a better answer in different circumstances, but I suppose the answer I gave held up, so can't complain.

I also think that the company you work for (possibly the industry?) and the US salary play a significant role in the process.