Read the general business expansion overview
Hypothetical example: Amara owns a packaging-materials distributor in Powassan supplying food processors and small manufacturers, and she is opening an American warehouse to serve customers she already ships to. She will transfer herself as its manager. Because the American entity will have traded for less than a year, this is a new-office petition, and the requirement that catches such filings is evidence that sufficient physical premises have been secured.
First: incorporate, capitalize and sign a real lease
New-office treatment requires evidence that sufficient physical premises have been secured, that the qualifying year abroad is satisfied, and that the American entity will support a managerial or executive position within one year, judged against the size of the investment, the parent's financial capacity and the proposed structure. Securing premises means a signed lease for space the business can actually use — for a distributor, warehouse space with loading access and enough square footage for the inventory described. A letter of intent, a shortlist of buildings or a virtual address does not meet it. Sign the lease before filing, and put the square footage and permitted use in front of the reader.
Second: move the money and build the paper that shows capacity
Capitalization should be more than a figure in a plan. Funds transferred from the Powassan company into the American entity's own bank account, racking and handling equipment ordered, opening inventory purchased, insurance bound: each of these produces a document, and together they answer whether the operation can support Amara's role within the year. The Canadian company's financial statements show it can fund the venture while continuing to trade, which it must do throughout. Where Amara also owns the parent, the petition should explain how the American entity will employ her as an employee rather than as an owner working for herself.
Third: file, then hire against the chart you filed
Initial approval in a new-office case is for one year, and the extension asks whether the office has become something that needs a manager. The staffing chart in the petition should therefore be treated as a commitment: a warehouse supervisor, a customer-service coordinator, drivers, hired on the dates given, with payroll records kept as they are. The most common failure is an office that after twelve months consists of the manager and little else, because she spent the year picking orders herself. Both entities must keep doing business throughout, and the ownership chain must remain documented. Her spouse would be employment-authorized as an L-2 spouse incident to status.
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.