The end of the secondment is not itself U.S. work authorization. Assess the qualifying history and applicable approval or admission steps before treating the next day as an authorized start.
Plan the transition between actual arrangements
Record the host assignment’s end, any return employment and the proposed U.S. duties. Identify the documents available at each point. Do not backdate knowledge or employment facts acquired later. A commercial handover schedule should include a contingency if evidence or immigration steps are not complete when the secondment finishes.
Evidence assembly is the longest step, often several weeks; after filing, premium processing yields a decision within the published window and a Canadian citizen can enter on the approval notice without a visa appointment. A work start date does not cure an arrangement where the unaffiliated employer principally controls and supervises the worker, or one that is essentially labor for hire rather than a product or service requiring knowledge specific to the petitioner. Compare the revised equipment-readiness date with the worker’s intended duties, housing commitments, foreign payroll arrangements, and remaining maximum stay; the general L-1B maximum is five years, subject to regulatory exceptions and recapture rules. The prudent sequence is to confirm the grower's continuous year abroad and the affiliate's active status, gather the technical exhibits while the current season's reports are fresh, file with premium processing, and hold the travel and housing arrangements until the approval notice arrives.