IN THIS GUIDE · An operations director moving into a U.S. dealership the group has just bought
Start with the L-1A eligibility and application overview
The qualifying relationship is proven by ownership and control documents
A qualifying relationship exists when one entity owns and controls the other, or when both are owned and controlled by the same parent or the same group of individuals in the same proportions. A purchase of 51 percent of the U.S. dealership's shares by the Canadian company is a subsidiary relationship; a purchase by Tomasz's employer's owner personally, in his own name, may instead create an affiliate relationship that has to be shown through the individual's holdings in both companies. The share register, purchase agreement and closing documents are the evidence, and they should be assembled before the petition is drafted. For any share purchase, preserve signed closing documents, registers and board records showing control immediately after closing. A press release or informal ownership summary does not settle the qualifying relationship.
Both entities must be doing business after the transfer
L-1 requires the petitioning group to keep operating in at least one other country for the duration of the stay. If the Canadian marina and dealership business continues selling boats and running slips, that condition is met. If the plan were to move the whole operation south and wind down the Canadian side, the qualifying organization would cease to exist abroad and the classification would fail. The group should record that the Canadian business will continue, with staff, revenue and a manager in Tomasz's place. The qualifying employment must be a full year with an eligible organization outside the country during the three years immediately before filing. Payroll, tax records and contemporaneous job descriptions are usually stronger than a retrospective letter alone.
General manager of a dealership can be managerial, but the duties must show it
The petition has to show that Tomasz will primarily manage the organization or a department, supervise professional or managerial staff or manage an essential function, and hold authority over hiring and day-to-day operations. A dealership general manager who sets pricing, hires sales and service leads, approves inventory purchases and reports to the group qualifies on those facts. A general manager who mostly sells boats himself with two seasonal helpers does not, however the job is titled. The staffing plan for the U.S. dealership is what makes the difference on paper. An L-1A recipient has a seven-year maximum period in the classification. A business plan should therefore explain both the initial transfer and who will lead the operation after that ceiling is reached.
The one year abroad must be counted before the petition date
Tomasz must have worked for the Canadian group in a managerial, executive or specialized-knowledge role for one continuous year within the three years before the petition is filed. Time he spent in the United States on business trips for the group does not break continuity, but it does not count toward the year either. If he joined the group only nine months ago from an unrelated employer, the transfer has to wait, and the group should plan around that date rather than around the closing date of the acquisition. For a newly opened operation, the first approval is limited to one year. Hiring, revenue and the transferee’s delegation record should be assembled during that year for any extension request.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.