L1, L2 Visa

Hi,

I would like to thank members of this forum for sharing their experiences and answering questions. This helped me immensely in preparing for the interview.

I had my interview on the 8th of July, below is my experience.

Approached the consulate 10 min before the appointment time (10:00 AM)
There are multiple parallel queues, ask around for the right one and join along.
Standard security check. (NO PHONES, analog watches are okay)
One Indian personnel will ask you sort the documents in the prescribed order.
Pay the fraud detection fee at Counter 14.
There will be a biometric verification of your fingerprints at another counter.
After which join the line for the actual interview, again some official will assign you to a specific counter.
Wait before the counter till it’s your turn.

Interview:
1. Who is your petitioner? A: My L1 Petitioner is xxxx Inc, My employer in the US is yyyy Inc. He wasn’t getting me. Explained yyyy and <Indian Employeer> are wholly owned subsidiaries of xxxx Inc.
2. Where are you going? A: YYYY X.
3. Salary and Title? A: Answered accordingly(Title in the US)
4. Pointed at I-129S specialized knowledge checkbox and asked what’s my specialization? A: Kept the answer very brief, talking about company-specific things and avoiding the technical jargon.
5. How many years of experience? A: Over n years.
6. How many Members of your team? A: n members
7. (Follow up question) Why are they only sending you and not the others? A: Stressed on the exclusivity of my skills and knowledge. (Never mention you are part of group immigrating, focus on why you and you alone)
8. (Question to wife) How Long have you been married?
9. (Question to wife) Do you have any kids?

The VO started continuously typing half way along with the interview. Towards the end, He stamped the I-129S, gave me two copies. Asking to submit one copy to the HR in India and the other during immigration clearance.

Points to Note:
1. VO listens to you keenly with eye contact initially, that’s your best opportunity to make your mark. Sound confident, be poised and maintain eye contact.
2. Never try to go around in circles trying to answer a question, from the 25 mins I spent watching others, most of them if not all, the visa application was rejected when the applicant was desperately trying to explain the purpose/their skills. DON’T BE VAGUE!
3. Each case is unique, rejection rates are merely anecdotal, with so many applicants, some are bound to get rejected. The VO will question until he/she is satisfied.
4. Try fitting your purpose and specialization in not more than 3 lines.

Understand the type of visa you are applying for, L1B is for specialized knowledge professional. The applicant should possess the skills and knowledge specific to the company, which is not easily available elsewhere in the job market.

All the best to everyone attending the interviews.