EB-1C Multinational Manager Green Card Approval — Proving Executive/Managerial Capacity at an NJ Subsidiary

IMMIGRATION LAW · SONG LAW FIRM SUCCESS STORY

Client Profile

• Nationality: Korean. Male executive in his mid-40s to early 50s (anonymized).
• Role: Vice President at an NJ subsidiary of a Korean conglomerate, overseeing finance, planning, and operations.
• Education: Bachelor's in business administration from a top Seoul university, MBA.
• Prior visa history: L-1A intracompany transferee for three years (2023-2026); EB-1C filed before L-1A expiration.

Case Background

In 2023 the client was transferred from the Seoul headquarters to an NJ subsidiary (five years old, roughly 80 employees) to stabilize the subsidiary's finance and operations and to drive US market expansion. As the L-1A three-year period approached its ceiling, permanent residence planning began. The subsidiary's revenue and staff had grown to a level that could plausibly support EB-1C requirements.

Legal Issues

EB-1C (Multinational Manager or Executive) rests on INA §203(b)(1)(C) and 8 CFR §204.5(j). Five requirements must all be met:

• The beneficiary worked abroad for a qualifying entity for at least one year within the three years before US employment.
• The foreign employment was in an executive or managerial capacity.
• The US employment is also in an executive or managerial capacity.
• The foreign and US employers have a qualifying relationship (parent-subsidiary, branch, or affiliate).
• The US employer has been doing business for at least one year.

Matter of Church Scientology International, 19 I&N Dec. 593 (Comm'r 1988) and later precedent set the "primarily managerial or executive function" test. USCIS does not defer to titles; it examines whether actual duties are primary.

Song Law Firm Strategy

Song Law Firm identified proving managerial capacity as the most vulnerable prong and built a documentation strategy accordingly.

• Two-level org chart naming the client's supervisor and six subordinate managers, with their roles, grades, and reporting lines.
• Job description separating executive functions from day-to-day operational tasks; documenting that 80%+ of the client's time was spent on policy decisions, hiring/firing authority, budget allocation, and subsidiary strategy.
• Financial substantiality: three years of Form 1120 tax returns, audited financials, revenue growth curve, and full-time headcount.
• Qualifying relationship: 100% ownership by the Seoul parent, stock certificates, corporate resolutions, five-year corporate history.
• Proof of the three prior years at Seoul headquarters: HR records, salary statements, and employment verification letter.
• Affidavits from each subordinate manager confirming their own discretion and budget authority, which is critical to showing the client's role is truly managerial rather than a first-line supervisor.

Process

• I-140 EB-1C filed (March 2026).
• RFE issued (May 2026) seeking additional detail on managerial capacity: subordinate managers' roles, examples of independent business decisions the client made, and specific budget authority amounts.
• Song Law Firm's RFE response (June 2026): board meeting minutes, thirty signed approval documents, six subordinate-manager affidavits, and a three-year strategy deck.
• Premium processing upgrade (July 2026): $2,805 for a 15-day adjudication window.
• I-140 approval (August 2026).
• Concurrent I-485 (Adjustment of Status) filed. Priority date current, awaiting EAD/AP issuance and final green card adjudication.

Result

• EB-1C I-140 petition approved.
• Concurrent I-485 filed. Priority date current, so final green card approval is projected within 12-18 months.
• Client and dependents secure their status. Spouse can work in the US under a derivative EAD.

Lessons

• EB-1C does not turn on the title. Actual duties must be primarily executive or managerial.
• The three pillars are org chart depth (subordinate manager count and role), subordinate managers' actual authority, and financial substantiality of the US entity.
• The L-1A three years plus EB-1C dual-track is a proven route for executives at well-run Korean multinationals.
• An RFE response preserves the priority date, unlike refiling, so investing in the strongest possible response is warranted.
• Premium processing is useful when timing is tight, but documentation quality comes first.
• NJ and NY host many Korean subsidiary offices, making EB-1C a highly relevant category. Song Law Firm has handled multiple such subsidiary-executive cases.