Read the general business expansion overview
Hypothetical example: a scaffolding and access contractor based near Pilot Butte formed a U.S. limited liability company five years ago for a project that never proceeded. The entity exists, has a registered agent and a small bank balance, and has never invoiced a customer or paid an employee. The company now wants its operations manager to launch U.S. work through it. Because a new office is one that has been doing business for less than a year, the dormant LLC is a new office despite its age, and the petition must carry new-office evidence and accept a one-year initial approval.
Doing business is measured by activity, not formation
The regulations define doing business as the regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods or services by a qualifying organization, and expressly exclude the mere presence of an agent or office. An LLC that has existed for five years without trading has not been doing business at all, so it cannot show a year of it. The petition is therefore a new-office case: the U.S. entity must show sufficient physical premises have been secured, that the transferee has one year of continuous qualifying employment with the Canadian company in the last three, that the Canadian company will remain actively doing business, and that within one year the U.S. operation will support a managerial or executive position, supported by a business plan, the proposed organizational structure and the financial goals. Approval is for one year.
Using the old entity or forming a fresh one
There is no immigration advantage to the old LLC beyond convenience, and there may be a disadvantage if its filings have lapsed. Check that it is in good standing in its state, that annual reports and taxes have been filed, that the operating agreement still reflects the Canadian company's ownership, and that the bank account is open and has a clean history. If any of that has decayed, the corporate lawyer may recommend reviving it formally or forming a new subsidiary; either is acceptable, but the qualifying relationship must be documented on the day of filing through ownership records. The premises must be real: a signed lease for a yard and office suitable for scaffolding operations, not a registered agent's address.
The first year and what the extension will require
At the end of the one-year approval the company must file for an extension showing that the U.S. office has been doing business for the year: contracts, invoices, payroll for the staff hired, tax filings and the premises in use, together with evidence that the operations manager is now managing rather than erecting scaffold himself. A dormant entity that stays dormant fails the extension. Plan the first contracts, the equipment transfer and the hiring of a crew before filing so that activity begins at once. The operations manager's Canadian year must itself have been managerial. Extensions after the first year come in two-year increments to the seven-year L-1A maximum. His L-2 spouse may work; children may study but may not work.
What else is on your mind?
Does being a business owner or director qualify me for L-1A?What employment history should an L-1 transfer review cover?What makes a new-office L-1A case different?Why does an L-2 spouse’s admission record matter for work?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.