dismissed L-1A Case: Clothing Retail

U.S. Deparrmcnt of Homeland Security 
20 Massachusetts Ave.. N.W., Rm. A3042 
Washington, DC 20529 
U.S. Citizenship 
and Irnmigratm 
Services 
PETITION: Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker Pursuant to Section 101(a)(15)(L) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 1101(a)(15)(L) 
ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: 
INSTRUCTIONS: 
This is the decision of the Administrative Appeals Office in your case. All documents have been returned to 
the office that originally decided your case. Any further inquiry must be made to that office. 
Robert P. Wiemann, ~i&ctor 
ministrative Appeals Office 
WAC 03 178 52287 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The nonimrnigrani visa petition was denied by the Director, California Service Center. The 
matter is now before the Administrative AppeaIs Office (AAO) on appeal. The appeal will be dismissed. 
According to the documentary evidence contained in the record, the petitioner was incorporated in 2003 and 
claims to be an imuort, ex~ort, wholesale, and retail clothing business. The petitioner claims to be a - 
subsidiary of The petitioner seeks to employ the beneficiary temporarily 
in the United States as vice president of its new office for a period of three years, at a yearly salary of 
$IOO,WX).00. The director dekmined that the petitioner had failed to submit sufficient evidence to establish 
that a qualifying relationship exists between the U.S. and foreign entities. 
On appeal, counsel asserts that sufficient evidence has been submitted to establish the existence of a 
qualifying reiationship between the U.S, and foreign entities. 
To establish L-1 eligibility under section 101(a)(15)(L) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), 
8 U.S.C. $ 1 lOl(a)(lS)(L), the petitioner must demonstrate that the beneficiary, within three years preceding 
the beneficiary's application for admission into the United States, has been employed abroad in a qualifying 
managerial or executive capacity, or in a capacity involving specialized knowledge, for one continuous year 
by a qualifying organization, and seeks to enter the United States temporarily in order to continue to render 
his or her services to the same employer, or a subsidiary or affiliate thereof, in a capacity that is managerial, 
executive, or involves specialized knowledge. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. 5 2 14.2(1)( l)(ii) states, in part: 
lntracompany trmferee means an alien who, within three years preceding the time of his or her 
application for admissjon into the Unite States, has been employed abroad continuously for one 
year by a fm or corpora6on or other legal entity or parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary 
thereof, and who seeks to enter the United States temporarily in order to render his or her 
services to a branch of the same employer or a parent, affiliate, or subsidiary thereof in a capacity 
that is managerial, executive, or involves specialized knowledge, 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. $214.2(1)(3) states that an individual petition filed on Form 1-129 shalt be 
accompanied by: 
(i) Evidence that the petitioner and the organization which employed or will employ the 
alien ate qualifying organizations as defined in paragraph {l)(l)(iiKG) of this 
section. 
(ii) Evidence that the alien will be employed in an executive, managerial, or 
specialized knowledge capacity, including a derailed description of the services to be 
performed. 
(iii) Evidence that the aiien has at least one continuous year of full-time employment 
abroad with a qualifying organization with the three years preceding the filing of the 
petition. 
iiv) Evidence that the alien's prior year of employment abroad was in a position that was 
managerial, executive or invoived specialized knowledge and that the alien's prior 
WAC 03 178 52287 
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education, training, and employment qualifies himther to perform the intended 
serves in the United States; however, the work in the United States need not be the 
same work which the alien performed abroad. 
The regulation at 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(1)(3)(v) states that if the petition indicates that the beneficiary is corning to 
the United States as a manager or executive to open or to be employed in a new oflice in the United States, the 
petitioner shall submit evidence that: 
(A) Sufficient physical premises to house the new office have been secured; 
(B) The beneficiary has been employed for one continuous year in the three year period 
preceding the filing of the petition in an executive or managerial capacity and that the 
proposed employment involved executive or managerial authority over the new 
operation; and 
(C) The intended United States operation, within one year of the approval of the petition, 
will support an executive or managerial position as defined in paragraphs (l)(l)(ii)(B) or 
(C) of this section, supported by information regarding: 
(1) The proposed nature of the office describing the scope of the entity, its 
organizational structure, and its financial goals; 
(2) The size of the United States investment and the financial ability of the 
foreign entity to remunerate the beneficiary and to commence doing 
business in the United States; and 
(3) The organizational structure of the foreign entity. 
The issue to be addressed in this proceeding is whether a qualifying relationship exists between the U.S. and 
foreign entities. 
The regulations at 8 C.F.R. 3 214.2(1)(l)(ii)(G) state: 
Qualifying organization means a United States or foreign firm, corporation. or other legal 
entity which: 
(1) Meets exactly one of the qualifying relationships specified in the 
definitions of a parent, branch, affiliate or subsidiary specified in 
paragraph (I)(l)(ii) of this section; 
(2) Is or will be doing business (engaging in international trade is not 
required) as an employer in the United States and in at least one other 
country directly or through a parent, branch, affiliate, or subsidiary for 
the duration of the alien's stay in the United States as an intracompany 
transferee; and 
WAC 03 178 52287 
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(3) Otherwise rneets the requirements of section IOl(a)(lSXL) of the 
Act. 
The regufations at 8 C.F.R. 1% 214.2(I)(l)(ii) define, in pertinent part, "parent" "branch," "subsidiary," and 
"affiliate" as: 
(I) Parent means a firm, corporation, or other legal entity which has subsidiaries. 
(J) Branch means an operation division or office of the same organization housed in a 
different location. 
(K) Subsidiary means a firm, corporation, or other legal entity of which a parent owns, 
directly or indirectly, more than half of the entity and controls the entity; or owns, 
directly or indirectly, half of the entity and controls the entity; or oms, directly or 
indirectly, 50 percent of a 50-50 joint venture and has equal control and veto power 
over the entity; or owns, directly or indirectly, less than half of the entity, but in fact 
controls the entity. 
{L) ADZiate means 
(1) One of two subsidiaries both of which are owned and controlled by the same parent 
or individual, or 
(2) One of two legal entities owned and controlled by the same gmup of individuals, 
each individual owning and controlling approximately the same share or proportion 
of each entity. 
In the instant matter, the petitioner claims to be a subsidiary of the foreign entity. The petitioner submitted 
copies of the U.S. entity's Articles of Incorporation, stock certificates, stock ledger, statement of information, 
notice of transaction. bank statement. wire transfer confmnation, and minutes from the U.S. 
meetin The petitioner also submitted copies of the Japanese entity's shareholder information and rh 
- 
ompany registry, tax return, and Business Registration Certificate. 
The stock distribution for the U.S. and foreign entities read as follows: 
U.S. ENTITY FOREIGN ENTRY 
Shareholders % of Shares Shareholders % of Shares 

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In visa petition proceedings, the burden of proving eligibility for the benefit sought remains entirely with the 
petitioner. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 1361. The petitioner has not sustained that burden. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed.