L-1B Visa: Specialized Knowledge Professional

Persons in this category get an L1B visa. The initial petition will be approved for 3 years (new office petition for 1 year), and can be renewed once for 2 years for a total of 5 years.

Specialized Knowledge:

Specialized knowledge means special knowledge possessed by an individual of the petitioning organization's product, service, research, equipment, techniques, management, or other interests and itsapplication in international markets, or an advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the organization's processes and procedures.

Specialized Knowledge Professional:

Specialized knowledge professional means an individual who has specialized knowledge as defined above and is a member of the professions including but not limited to architects, engineers, lawyers, physicians, surgeons, and teachers in elementary or secondary schools, colleges, academies, or seminaries.

    For example,

  • To be considered specialized, the knowledge should be essential to a special research program, or the person should have expert knowledge regarding a company's materially different product or manufacturing process.
  • Even if specialty cooks and chefs may have a knowledge of a restaurant's special recipes, they are not considered to possess specialized knowledge

    • Specialized knowledge employee has more skills or knowledge than the ordinary employee.However, this doesn't require an "extraordinary" level of skills, merely more than that ofthe ordinary employee in the company or the field.

    Petition should submit the evidence that,

  • The alien's specialized knowledge is distinguished by some unusual qualification and not generally known by practitioners in the alien's industry.
  • The alien possesses an advanced level of knowledge and the evidence should describe and set part the knowledge from elementary knowledge possessed by others
L-1B to L1A Conversion:

As the maximum stay on L1B is five years while it is seven years for L1A visa, some people may want to do L-1B to L-1A conversion. As long as the L-1A petition is approved prior to completion of 4.5 years on L-1B visa. Of course, the alien must be eligible to receive L1A on its own. However,the work experience outside the U.S. does not have to be in the same capacity as the proposed employment in the U.S.