Spouses and qualifying children (unmarried and under the age of 21) of L-1 visa holders are eligible for L-2 visa.
L-2 visa is a nonimmigrant visa which means that the visa holder is authorized to stay in the U.S. temporarily.
The status of an L-2 dependent is subject to the same period of admission and limitations as the principal L-1 visa holder.
If the L-1 principal is eligible to recapture time spent abroad, the L-2 dependents should be given an extension of stay up to the new expiration date of the L-1’s stay, even if the L-2 dependents never depart the United States.
To qualify for an L-2 visa, you must meet certain requirements and provide evidence to prove it. Spouses of L-1 visa holders must provide their marriage certificate. Unmarried children under 21 must provide a copy of their long-form birth certificate listing L-1 principal visa holder as a parent. Each document in foreign language must be translated into English.
The statute and regulations allow L-2 status only if the dependents are accompanying or following to join the L-1 principal.
USCIS may limit, deny or revoke on notice any stay for an L-2 dependent that is not primarily intended for the purpose of being with the L-1 principal, for example, where an L-1 visa holder uses occasional work visits to the United States to “park” family members in the United States for extended periods of time.
L-2 spouses are eligible for employment authorization (EAD). In order to obtain employment authorization in the U.S. L-2 spouses are required to apply for employment authorization documents by filing Form I-765 and supporting documentation with USCIS. If L-2’s EAD application is approved, they can be employed at any company in the U.S. without limitations unlike the L-1 principal visa holder who can work only for the company that sponsored their L-1 visa.
The I-765 application may not be filed until the L-2 spouses has physically entered the United States in L-2 status or, for those applying for change of status or extension of stay
in L-2, the I-765 may be filed concurrently with an I-539 application.
L-2 dependent children are not eligible for employment authorization but they are allowed to attend educational institutions in the U.S.
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