L-1 visa for Turkish companies

• Proof that the Turkish company exists and who owns it. Examples: an entry from the Turkey Ticaret Sicili Gazetesi (the gazette where trade registry entries are announced), a certified copy (onaylı suret) of the registry record from the trade registry directorate (ticaret sicili müdürlüğü), the share ledger (pay defteri) or a shareholder list, and the articles of association (esas sözleşme).
• Proof that the Turkish company is trading. Examples: the latest tax returns and financial statements (bilanço, gelir tablosu) and the tax plate (vergi levhası), which taxpayers can query as an e-tax plate on the Digital Tax Office.
• Proof of the employee's year in Turkey. Examples: the SGK service record (SGK tescil ve hizmet dökümü, available on the e-Devlet portal), payroll (bordro), the employment contract (iş sözleşmesi) and an organization chart that shows the employee's role and who reported to them.
• A letter on the Turkish company's letterhead that describes the employee's duties in Turkey and the planned U.S. job, with the share of time spent on each task.
• U.S. company records: certificate of formation, operating agreement or bylaws, the EIN letter and an ownership chart that links the U.S. company to the Turkish company.
• New office: a signed lease, the first-year plan with job titles and dates, and proof of the U.S. investment and of the Turkish company's ability to pay, such as bank transfers and financial statements.
• Full English translations of every Turkish document, with the translator's certification that the translation is complete and accurate and that the translator is competent to translate (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3)). A sworn translation (yeminli tercüme) should still carry this certification.
• Apostille: the Mission's document list for H, L, O, P, Q and R visas names the original Form I-129 petition and does not name an apostille. Get one for a Turkish document only if a bank, notary or U.S. office asks for it.
• For the interview: the passport, the DS-160 confirmation page, one color photograph taken within the last six months (5 x 5 cm, white background, no eyeglasses), the appointment letter and the original petition (Form I-129). Each family member applies with their own DS-160.

• The year is hard to prove from Turkish records. The SGK record names another employer, shows gaps or shows part-time work. Explain each gap with payroll, contracts or board records before filing.
• The ownership does not match a definition. Different share proportions in the Turkish and U.S. companies, or a U.S. company held personally by one partner, can fail the affiliate test.
• The Turkish records are out of date. A share transfer, a capital change or a new manager that never reached the trade registry leaves the records out of line with the ownership chart you submit.
• A dormant company or a mailbox office. Both companies must keep doing business for the whole stay; a Turkish company that has stopped trading, or a U.S. office that is only an agent or a mailbox, is not “doing business”.
• The manager's role is overstated. A job description that calls a hands-on worker a manager invites a request for evidence. The plan must show a managerial or executive job within one year.
• Money not shown. The petition must show the size of the U.S. investment and the Turkish company's ability to pay the employee and start doing business. Transfers from Turkey need records.
• Owner or major shareholder. The petition must show the U.S. assignment is temporary and that the person will be transferred abroad at the end.
• Incomplete translations. A Turkish document without a full English translation and the translator's certification can delay the case.
• Wrong fee or missing original. USCIS rejects a petition with the wrong fee. At the visa interview, bring the original petition the Mission asks for.

• The employee has not worked for the Turkish company for a continuous year in the last three: E-2 for Turkish investors turns on nationality and investment, and an H-1B may suit a professional.
• The U.S. business belongs to you personally, and the Turkish company has other owners or none: there may be no qualifying relationship. Compare E-2 for Turkish investors.
• The U.S. presence is a mailing address, a virtual office or an agent: that is not “doing business” under 8 CFR 214.2(l)(1)(ii)(H).
• You need a green card in the first year: the EB-1C category requires the U.S. employer to have been doing business for at least one year. See L-1 intracompany transfer.

Who this is for

• Turkish companies, such as an A.Ş. (anonim şirket) or a Ltd. Şti. (limited şirket), that open a first U.S. office and send a manager or executive to set it up and run it.
• Turkish groups that already have a U.S. branch, subsidiary or affiliate and move a manager, an executive or an employee with specialized knowledge there.
• Owners who run the Turkish company and want to run the U.S. office themselves. An owner or major shareholder must also show that the U.S. assignment is temporary and that the person will return abroad when it ends (8 CFR 214.2(l)(3)(vii)).
• Families: a spouse and unmarried children under 21 can join the employee in L-2 status. A spouse in valid L-2S status is employment authorized incident to status.

Key requirements

• One year in Turkey. The employee must have worked full-time for the Turkish company, or a related company abroad, for one continuous year in the three years before filing. Lawful time in the U.S. and short visits do not break the year, but they do not count toward it.
• A qualifying relationship. The Turkish and U.S. companies must be parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate (8 CFR 214.2(l)(1)(ii)). A subsidiary generally means a parent owns more than half and controls it. An affiliate means two entities owned and controlled by the same group of individuals, each holding approximately the same share of each entity. Example: one founder who owns 100% of both the Turkish A.Ş. and the U.S. company usually meets the affiliate test. Three partners who hold 40/30/30 of the Turkish company, while one of them alone owns the U.S. company, may meet neither test.
• Both companies keep doing business. “Doing business” means the regular, systematic and continuous provision of goods or services. The mere presence of an agent or an office does not count.
• The U.S. job. L-1A is for a manager or executive. L-1B is for special knowledge of the company's products, services or other interests and how they apply in international markets, or an advanced level of expertise in its processes and procedures.
• A new U.S. office. The company has secured sufficient physical premises. For an L-1A, the employee was a manager or executive for the year in Turkey, and the U.S. office will support a managerial or executive job within one year of approval. The petition shows the scope and structure of the office, its financial goals, the size of the U.S. investment, the Turkish company's ability to pay the employee and the Turkish company's own structure (8 CFR 214.2(l)(3)(v)). For an L-1B new office, the rule asks for the premises, a qualifying U.S. company and the ability to pay ((l)(3)(vi)).
• Blanket L is rarely the route for a small or mid-size group. It needs a U.S. office that has done business for a year, three or more branches, subsidiaries or affiliates, and one of: 10 L approvals in the last 12 months, $25 million in combined U.S. sales or 1,000 U.S. employees. Groups below those numbers file an individual petition.

What to check with an attorney

• Whether the year in Turkey is met on the actual dates, and whether SGK, payroll and contract records agree on the employer and the full-time status.
• Whether the share proportions in the Turkish company and the U.S. company meet the parent, subsidiary or affiliate definition exactly.
• Whether the Turkish trade registry records show the current owners and managers.
• Whether L-1 or E-2 fits the owners better, given nationality, the length of stay and the nationality of the staff.

Fees and rules reviewed 26 Oct 2026. Sources below.

Official sources:

1. USCIS: L-1A intracompany transferee executive or manager (reviewed 31 Aug 2026)
2. USCIS: L-1B intracompany transferee specialized knowledge (reviewed 31 Aug 2026)
3. 8 CFR 214.2(l): intracompany transferees (eCFR)
4. USCIS Form G-1055, fee schedule (edition 10/16/26)
5. USCIS: H and L filing fees for Form I-129 (reviewed 9 Sep 2026)
6. USCIS: How do I request premium processing? (reviewed 23 Mar 2026)
7. 22 CFR 22.1: State Department schedule of fees (eCFR)
8. U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Türkiye: NIV, How do I apply?
9. U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Türkiye: Visas
10. USCIS: E-2 treaty investors (reviewed 20 Aug 2026)
11. T.C. Ticaret Bakanlığı: Ticaret Sicili (trade registry, gazette, MERSİS)
12. e-Devlet: Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu services (SGK Tescil ve Hizmet Dökümü)
13. Resmî Gazete, 7 Oct 2023, no. 32332: VUK General Communiqué 552, art. 8 (e-tax plate query)
14. 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3): translations (eCFR)

What changed: new page for Turkish companies with 2026 USCIS and State Department fees, the Ankara and Istanbul visa steps and examples of Turkish records.