January has proven to be a very busy month for our attorneys at the Peace Bridge.  Attorneys Rosanna Berardi and Jennifer Behm have appeared with more than 10 clients for a variety of U.S. work authorization issues, including both initial and renewal NAFTA applications. All of our petitions were approved by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Following is a recap of some of the matters our office has handled these last few weeks.
• Berardi Immigration Law represents a large golf course construction company headquartered in Toronto. The employer wished to transfer a vital project supervisor to the states so he could oversee a major course renovation project in Georgia. We prepared a detailed L-1A petition for this employee. We also outlined the company’s operations, his managerial-level job in Canada, and his proposed responsibilities in the U.S. Jennifer Behm, our associate attorney, met with the employee at the Peace Bridge and he was quickly approved for a three-year period. He is now able to travel for work between Canada and U.S. project locations with ease!
• Another client is a leading provider of proprietary communications solutions. The Canadian company needed a high-level employee in the states to oversee the implementation team at its U.S.-based offices. Since the employee had not been with the company for one full year, he did not qualify for L-1 status. He did, however, possess a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering. We prepared a TN petition for the employee under the engineering designation. Since he was one of the initial architects of the enterprise product, we were able to argue that his unique and extensive knowledge of the platform uniquely qualified him to direct the software team in the U.S. His TN status was approved for a three-year period.
• One of our Canadian clients was due for an L-1A renewal. Our team prepared the petition and outlined the company’s continuing operations in Canada, viability in the U.S., and the executive-level job duties our client performed each day as the company’s president. Rosanna Berardi, our managing partner, met him at the Peace Bridge and the petition was approved without issue. An L-1 beneficiary is eligible to have immediate family members (spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21) accompany him/her to the U.S. in derivative L-2 status. If those dependents are Canadian, they can receive L-2 status right at the border.
Our client’s spouse, however, was not a Canadian citizen. After his L-1 approval, our team scheduled a visa appointment for her at the U.S. Embassy in Toronto. At the interview, she will show her marriage certificate and evidence of her husband’s L-1 Approval. She will then receive an L-2 visa in her passport that is valid for the duration of his L-1 status.
If you are an employee with a U.S. job offer, or a company that wishes to transfer your employees to the U.S. or experiencing other U.S. work authorization issues, please contact one of our immigration attorneys today at 1-877-721-6100 or visit www.berardiimmigrationlaw.com.