IN THIS GUIDE · Give a Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval plant manager the questions to put to the employer before an L-1A transfer
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
Ask how the two companies are related on paper
Hypothetical example: a Sainte-Brigitte-de-Laval plant manager at a wood-products manufacturer is asked to run a U.S. affiliate. Ask who owns each company and in what percentages. A qualifying relationship exists where one owns the other, both have the same parent, or both are owned and controlled by the same individuals in roughly the same proportions. If the answer is that the two firms share a founder but the ownership splits differ, the relationship may fail and the petition with it.
Ask what the U.S. job description will say
Request the draft description and the U.S. organizational chart before deciding. The duties must be primarily managerial: directing supervisors or professionals, or running an essential function at a senior level, with authority over hiring and budgets. A plant manager who would also run the production line personally because the U.S. site is short-staffed is describing a job that may not qualify, and the company should be asked how the staffing gap will be closed.
Ask what the company will file and when
Establish who is preparing the petition, whether premium processing will be used, and whether the U.S. entity has been operating for at least a year; if not, the case is a new-office petition approved for one year and the extension will depend on growth. Ask to see the support letter before it is filed, because the transferee will be questioned on its contents at the port of entry.
Ask what the family and the return look like
An L-2 spouse is employment-authorized by virtue of status; children may study, cannot work, and cease to qualify at 21. Ask whether the assignment has a planned duration, whether the company intends to sponsor permanent residence later, and what happens to the transferee's Québec position if the U.S. role ends. These are employment questions, but their answers decide how much of Québec life should remain in place.
Executive capacity is about authority, not headcount
For executive capacity, assess direction of the organization or a major component or function, goals and policies, wide discretionary latitude and only general higher-level supervision. The qualifying organization must do business in the United States and at least one other country during the relevant period, through regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods or services rather than registration alone. The first review should separate a governance title from the evidence of day-to-day authority: reporting lines, delegated approval limits, budgets, meeting records and the personnel performing operational tasks.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.