L1, L2 Visa

Recently, one of my team mate got terminated. The question asked was:

VO: Were you invovled in the development of this tool ?
Candidate: No

VO: If you have not developed this tool, how can you be specialized in this tool ?
Candidate: I am into testing of the application.

VO: I am sorry, sir! Your visa is not clearly approvable.
Candidate: :(

What should be the best answer in this scenario. The candidate actually is not involved in development but knows in and out of the application.

My collegue is soon going to attend L1B interview. Any idea on the rejection rates?
With the recent policy what I heard is L1s are little bit made liberal.

In some cases what happens is a real and needy candidate gets rejected. Not sure what is the use of rejecting L1B.

Hello Everybody,

Its a great website and thanks all for sharing your views. It's really helpful.

I am expecting to go for L1 visa stamping in couple of months from now. Wanted to understand -

I am working in Mumbai, I have my passport from Mumbai which I got renewed recently, but my wife and kid's passport is of Bangalore. Though each of us have the spouse name updated as required. Is it going to make any difference while going for Visa stamping?
Or the place of issue of passport doesn't matter? I am asking as, if my wife's passport needs to be from the current place then I would get it renewed before the process will start.

Appreciate your help.

Thanks,
Ankur

Guys, is it difficult to get L1 Visa if you are going to open a new office for your Company in USA ? I am the Director of the Company and thinking of applying for L1 Visa, as i need to setup & open our US Office. Please suggest what could be the challenges.

Hello All,
Thanks to Immihelp members for all the experiences. Mine was no different :)

Day 1 : OFC Center

Usual process. Checked Passport and DS 160. Got Fingerprints and photographs taken.
Questions were asked relating to details in the passport like full name, date of birth, place of birth etc.
Time Taken : 15 mins

Day 2: Consulate

Surprisingly not very crowded.
Passport verification and security check was completed first, followed by Anti-fraud DD submission at counter 14.
If any change in DD amount , difference can be paid either through cash or card (Full DD amount only if paying by card).
Next we had passport and finger prints verified again.

At the counter :
VO : Good Morning !!
Me : Good Morning Sir, Hope you are having a great day !!
VO : So far, so Good. Documents please
Me: Gave the passport+ I129S and I797 triplicate bundled.
VO: How long have you been working with XX ?
Me: I am with XX for 1.5 years, with close to X years of total experience.
VO: That’s great. Can you explain your specialized skill please ?
Me: Explained.
VO: Cuts in between. Sorry sir, Can you tell me the name of your client please ?
Me: Mentioned client.
VO: Thank You, please go ahead.
Me: Completed my explanation. Ended with a numerical example of benefits to client.
VO: <<Types something in the computer for 2 mins.. >>That’s a pretty impressive number in a large scale scenario. How long have you been married Sir?
Me: Told
VO: To my wife, You work in YYY right mam ?
My Wife: Yes sir.
VO: Great. Sir, Your L1B visa is approved. Hands over the stamped petition copies. Have a nice day Sir !!
Me: Thank you. Have a nice day?

Out of consulate!

Total Time : 20 mins (Waiting time 10 mins, Interview and other process 10 mins)

My take on the interview :
1. Be confident in what you are telling, VO doesn’t have time to go through all your documents. He depends entirely on what you say.
2. Explain any technical terms that you would use.
3. Don’t use generic terms/technologies like Java, Hibernate, Risk management, Testing etc.. A guy in the next counter was rejected the moment he mentioned he is a Risk management expert using some tool.
4. Give simple examples where possible.
5. Maintain Eye contact. VO checks that intermittently !!

Thanks again to Immihelp :)

Hello All,

I Had my L1B-Individual visa got approved on 20th May'15 at US Consulate, Hyderabad.
Here is a bit of background on my case,

I was denied L1B-Blanket visa in the last week of Sep'2014 and then my employer filed L1B-Individual (Normal processing) two weeks later i.e. in the 2nd week of Oct.
I received RFE on my case in the mid of Feb'15 with about 15 questions and I took my time (abt 3 weeks) before I replied to that RFE. I received a mail in the first week of Apr'15
that my petition was approved.

I put my experience into words and u can find it below,

My interview was scheduled @9.30 am and I reached the consulate by 8.45 am.
After completing all the formalities I was there before Visa Officer @10:15 am.

VO was a young guy and he was speaking with super US accent and his voice was very clear to understand. He was a bit loud too that the entire room (with 4 counters)
could hear his voice. He was cracking some jokes sometimes and also grilling people with too many questions.

Before my interview he rejected a guy (7 yrs of working experience) who applied for MBA in US.
The VO said to him that he completed MBA with 1/4 th of the fee that the person quoted (He quoted around 40k Dollars) and asked him to
explore more by giving some pamphlet (I wan't sure what it was) and told him not to waste his money. Also the person said he explored in Google and with some of
 his friends but the VO asked him not to
listen to his friends (:P) instead suggested him to go through the phamplet he gave it to him.

Well, Next was me.

Here is how it went!!

(By the way I was not nervous and I didn't get tense with that rejection)

Me: Good Morning!!
VO:Good Morning..Pls give me your passport.
--I gave passport (only) to him
VO: Who sponsored this L1B for u?
Me: I answered my company name.

-- VO checked something in his system for a few seconds.

VO: What is ur job title here?
Me: YYYY title and briefed in a few words about my skills and the work that I was currently doing.

VO: Why didn't u go for H1B?
Me: I wasn't lucky enough to be got picked up in lottery.

VO: Well, Do you know the difference between L1B and H1B?
Me: Yes, L1 B is for a specialized knowledge persons.

VO: Tell me abt ur specialization.
Me: Explained in two sentences using very simple words.

VO: What is ur client name?
Me: ZZZ

VO: What's ur annual salary in US?
Me: XX K Dollars.

VO: R u married?
Me: No, I''m not.

VO: So r u hunting now? (Smiled a bit here)
Me: Yes (I said)

VO: Had u been to US before?
Me: Yes, I visited US couple of times before on a business travel. (I hold a B1 visa valid for another 8 years)

VO: What was ur last US trip with longest duration?
Me: It's 50 days.

VO: Hmm is it Fiftyyy???
Me: Yes, it is 50days.

VO: Ur visa is approved sir. Have a good Day!!
Me: Thank u sir!! Good day!!

Thank you forum for all the info and it helped me a lot to prepare well before attending the interview and stay relaxed during the interview.

Also below are some detailsof mine,

Visa Category: L1B-Individual.
Exp: 5.5 years.
Interview Location: Hyderabad

I wish u all the best!!

Cheers
Ram

Hi All,

I owe to these forum a lot and would like to Thank all the feedback shared on the same.

Here is my experience, the interview was simple for me, that is what I felt. Had gone with family for all 3 of our Visas.

The following questions were asked to me & my spouse

Q1. Have you ever been to US earlier and on which visa?
Q2, How many people do you supervise?
Q3. How much do they pay you in the US?
Q4. Is this the only child you have? (To My Spouse)

Handed over a pamphlet to my spouse for women security :) and said the Visas are approved for all and enjoy your stay in the US.

Some tips though may be a repeat, just chill and have confidence that whatever visa type you have applied for is appropriate and the same you can explain to the VO when asked. All questions are easy but prepare with Jobs and responsibilities question very well that's where I believe people get stuck.

Best of luck to the new applicants.

Thanks Again Forum.

Cheers!!!

I attended the L1 visa interview on 18-May-2015. It was a very nice experience. Smooth as whistle. The process has been streamlined so well that there was minimal to no waiting for the interview process. Biometrics was done at 8am. There was a small queue. I would suggest people not to land before 15-20 minutes. There were 9am appointment people who came at 7.30 and they were asked to go and stand at a distance. So it's better, both for you and the guys over there if you don't go before 15-20 minutes.Finger printing was done in 10 minutes.

I had the interview at 12.30. I reached the consulate at 12.10. There was no queue. ZERO. I was immediately sent in, documents verified, scan done everything happened in a jiffy. I went inside and made to wait for my DD payment to be approved. As the dollar rate had changed I was asked to pay 1000 INR which I did. I moved the next counter to the visa officer. There was no one there taking the interview except me. I do not know if the crowd management has improved or I was just plain lucky. I saw the visa officer and from a distance I could sense that it is going to be smooth. He was smiling and wishing even before I went near the counter. He asked me four questions

1. How long have you been working with your current company?
2. What are you going there for?
3. What is the product?
4. How long will you stay there? (I answered based on my petition)

No questions asked to my spouse.

Visa approved. Done.

I owe to this forum to write my experience. I had my L1B-Blanket refused in Mar'12 then employer filed individual with Premium processing and it approved in Apr'13. As position was closed employer didn't allow me to go for stamping. As I had only 8 months left to expiry of visa, somehow I managed employer to get ready for stamping. Delay of almost 2 years was the problem, so was prepared for that answer.
I had applied with my wife on 13th May'14. VO was a lady, straight face.

Me: Good Morning Officer
VO: No reply, Give me your passport and documents.
VO: Kyaa ye Renewal hai (in hindi)
Me: No, Petition was approved in 2013 but I have come here for stamping now.
VO: So, are you visiting for first time to US
Me: Yes
VO: What was the reason for 2 years gap?
Me: Pardon (as I was not getting)
VO: what was the reason for 2 years?
Me: Pardon (I got tensed)
VO: Reason for not coming earlier, (My wife also helped me, My English is not that bad, not sure what went there)
Me: reason provided
VO: ok, your designation
Me; said for india and in US
VO: Salary
Me: ......$/annum

to my wife:
VO: What is your highest qualification
Vo: How long you have been married.

Lot of computer work , then she lift the passport(my heart was beating as I know how it feels when it get rejected)

Then the Golden words, Your Visa is Approved
came back, and is ready for pick up on the second day.

Great forum to get a sense of how the whole process and how the interview process would be.. really helps.

Many points below is me just being me.. and not to be taken as an advice.. its just sharing thoughts/experience.

Preparation :

Started going through many many pages of the forum to understand the type of Questions Visa Officer (VO) asks, spoke to many people who had experiences etc and Compiled a set of Questions. I realized that I need to prepare well especially because my title was just Manager. Taking cues from people on the key words like portfolio, risks, program, people management etc, I started preparing how to articulate in a best way for each of those Questions. I also decided to wear a blazer respecting the category I am applying.

I started preparing to prepare by finding the right balance of words to choose, statements to frame and tried practicing but I slowly realized probably my objective of articulating in a best way and squeezing in keywords is screwing my natural flow. But I stuck to the plan as I didn't want to take the risk as my title was simply a Manager and didn't had qualifying words like Account Manager, Engagement Manager etc which was a concern. Neither I had a big team to present a strong case...I only had 3 tech leads on-board , 2 in hiring rest only in planning. So days passed while I kept thinking best statement I could come up with for each critical questions.. However, everyday passed, I was getting worse and worse and previous night of stamping, I was pathetic and nervous.

Realism :

Close to midnight before stamping day I was in a call with my future boss on something else, she mentioned probably I am over-preparing.. Though the fact was I was only preparing to prepare till then it got me into thinking - what am I trying to achieve.. I am not attending a presidential debate or a speech competition. I am going to talk to an educated Officer who has common sense and he is just doing his job.. He would be smart enough to understand what is cooked up and what is genuine.

And even he rejects, what am I loosing.. I already been to US, I am capable of finding a great job in India (my job was at stake as my replacement was already hired assuming my visa will go through.. huh)... living in my mother country which I grew up, close to near and dear ones, can have chats and hot masala dosas whenever I like.. more than anything I can talk cricket than baseball (I know many Indian's like baseball over cricket when they are in US.. and BTW, they like Yoga too when In US..lol ..Just kidding). That was it.. it struck me so hard and I decided to screw everything and to be just myself... to be natural... I control my life and not VO... Closed everything and slept well.

Morning :

Woke up late (as usual).. hurried up, brushed while taking bath (o)...grabbed documents, took shoe in one hand while trying to wear shirt on another hand..finally got ready. Family was ready already and waiting for me.. (They do this all the time..Grrr). On the final look at the mirror, I decided not to wear blazer because if I am being myself, I wont wear it unless it is a business meet and meeting a VO was not a business meeting for me.

Started from home around 8.30 and reached consulate by 9.30 for 10 AM appointment. I got bit worried on the way as it was raining and I was not sure how I will manage with family being in the Queue if its raining and about chennai traffic during rains. By gods grace, reached on time and line outside was not huge which was a relief..

Got inside consulate relatively very quick. To my surprise, consulate was heavily crowded. It seems like when it rained, they allowed everyone in the Queue to go in which was a right thing to do. However it resulted in a long-long Q inside for Document verification, Payment, Finger printing and VO Interview. It was close to chaos as the systems and process couldn't hold the crowd flow.... But I felt very happy that they let people in without which many families with small kids and elderly would have had tough time.

Pre Interview process

Nothing to worry much.. VFS folks will guide you on what you need to do. Please carry enough cash... You would need to pay differential in cash.. I saw many people going out to get cash from ATMs. This is a tip I got from this forum which helped

Interview

While in queue, I noticed the VO I am designated to was very pleasant but was also rejecting people. I could hear the whole interview of one family for B1 which I felt very genuine was rejected and another L1(A/B.. not sure) too got rejected.. But another elderly couple got their visa approved. I was cracking some jocks and my wife asked me.. are you not tensed.. I replied.. Why should I get tensed to tell him what I do and what I will be doing... And outcome ? How does it matter. We only have choice over our actions not on the result (Bhagavat.Gita).. As my wife staring at me in disbelief my turn was up (she knew my job in India was at stake as replacement is already hired)

Greeted VO,
VO greeted back

VO : Are you applying for L1
Me : Me, Yes. L1A

VO : How long you been in this company.
Me : I am working for xxx for past 5 yrs in xxx position

VO : What is the purpose of your Visit
Me : I explained in 5-6 statements in my own way, what I do now, the challenges and where the executive management see my division in 3 yrs and how I will be overcoming those challenges by going to US by building a team there. (Bingo.. He was impressed)

VO : Where in US are you going to
Me : xxx, xx state

VO : How long are you planning to stay sir
Me : I am planning to stay for 2.5 to 3 yrs or probably come back little earlier than than.. Plan is to come back once the new team has gone through forming,storming and norming phase

VO : You been to US before
Me : Yes.. We all were there for xx yrs and came back as my parents needed me. Now opted to go there for a short period of life which is a commitment I have towards the organization and for the division where I have invested 5 yrs of my life.

VO : Where in US were you before
Me : xxx,xxx - It was a real cool place.. and spoke couple of interesting things about that place which I like.
VO : Yes.. I know, I have heard about those..always wanted to visit

VO : To my daughter, are you excited to go to US
Daughter : I am not sure.. I don't know.. I like both places (Cheater.. She was always excited.. I guess she is in double mind now)

VO : Chit chatted few statements saying my son wouldn't be remembering US (as he was small at the time)

Then said.. Congrats.. Your Visa is approved. Gave me two copies of docs and wished me a safe flight. I thanked him and wished a great day and walked out. Whole process took 2 hours (because it was crowded) and interview took only 5 mins.

My gut feeling :

Just be yourself if your case is genuine..Just explain what the case is in your own way. My case was genuine though my title and number of DRs and their skills was not meeting any of the criteria required. They have enough information about you, your company, what they do.. how many people they send, how many people got rejected etc even before you walk to the counter.

So one thing that would make you stand out of the crowd is to show how credible you as a person are and how honest you are. A No to a question may not mean your visa is denied. I don't think keywords really matter.. may be that's the reason why some Project Managers get selected and some do not. I am sure I was not just being lucky..

My Profile :

Experience : 17 Yrs
Management Exp : 8 yrs
Previous US exp : 4 yrs
US Title : xxx Manager while xxx is a function I will be managing
US Salary : Six Digits
Team Size : 3 (+2 in hiring, +3 future plans.)

Hope you enjoyed my blog. I know you are reading this because you have a visa stamping coming up. Wish you all the best.