When it comes to writing a business plan to accompany an L-1 visa application, the personnel section is absolutely the most important section within the document. An L-1 visa is all about the applicant and the personnel that will be hired as a result of the applicant coming and opening a shop. This is where the applicant’s resume is critical, and the lack of a strong resume could prove troubling for the application approval status.

The importance of the applicants resume primarily stems from USCIS wanting to see that an applicant has ample experience to complete operational tasks necessary for the company to run (in the first year after the L-1 visa has been obtained), and to complete managerial and executive tasks necessary for the company to grow and create more jobs & tax revenue (from year 2 to year 5 in the personnel/financials after the L-1 visa has been obtained).

Whether you are writing your business yourself or having a professional company like ourselves handle it, the personnel section writing goes much smoother when you can have a well-written resume to use as inspiration for building up the applicant within the business plan. Being able to see a complete work and experience history helps in creating a clear narrative and helps the writer be able to better sell the applicant.

When you are writing the Personnel Section of an L-1 Business plan try to keep in mind the following:

• An L1 applicant can’t perform operational tasks for more than one year from the moment the visa has been granted. If you show the applicant’s role handling operational tasks after the first year, he or she will get denied.
• The Personnel Section should highlight/prove that the applicant is experienced and capable of handling the executive level strategic, planning, and managerial duties as well as has the skills to get the company off the ground within the first year to be able to hire individuals to take over operational tasks.
• Don’t get too creative. The L-1 personnel section is not about painting a creative, sales-pitch picture. It’s about presenting a clean, clear, and logical timeline. USCIS wants to see which employees will be hired right away when the visa is obtained, which employees will be hired after 1 year, after 2 years, etc… and they want to see, numbers-wise, how that personnel timeline will affect the company both financially and otherwise.
• Remember that the ultimate purpose for the U.S. government to grant any type of business visa is ultimately to create more jobs and tax revenue, so gear the plan towards showing USCIS that having the applicant and establish or bring a new business to the US will ultimately benefit the economy.

Keeping in mind all of the above and having a strong resume to translate into a well-written personnel section for your L1 Business plan will go a long way. However, we do not expect everyone to be a professional business plan writer, so should you need some professional advice or prefer having a team of dedicated professionals handle your L-1 Visa Business Plan, be sure to contact us and we will be more than happy to assist you.