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BÉCANCOUR · L-1A FIELD GUIDE

Should a Bécancour employer pay premium processing for an L-1A when the qualifying year is still uncertain?

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THE DIRECT ANSWER

No. Faster adjudication of an unsupported petition produces a faster denial. Spend first on the chronology review, then take current fees from the USCIS fee schedule.

Buy certainty about the year before buying speed

Employers with an opening date tend to reach for premium processing as the first expense. If the superintendent period is doubtful or the U.S. trips have eaten into the year, the money is better spent on a careful review of duty statements and org charts, or simply on waiting until the year is complete.

Government charges for the Form I-129 petition, the fraud-prevention fee, any applicable employer surcharges and premium processing are set in the USCIS fee schedule and change; read the current schedule rather than reusing a figure from a previous transfer. For a Canadian citizen, port-of-entry presentation of an L petition is possible and carries its own charges at the border. Translation of French corporate records and professional fees for the corporate-relationship evidence are separate lines.

A new-office petition adds the cost of a lease and a business plan that will be examined again at the one-year extension.