 If you are planning for an L1 visa interview with your dependent, then this video is exactly what you need. Today's video is going to be a real visa interview experience and I have with me two people, Anurj and Rohani, the husband wife duo, who are going to share their L1 and L2 visa experience. And this video is going to talk about the entire process, how they planned their entire visa journey, what were the questions that were asked to them and a little bit about their life in the US. So keep on watching. Hi guys, my name is Shachi and I'm a travel and visa coach. On this channel, you will find lots of useful videos on the US visa process. There is an entire playlist for L1 visas, so make sure that you subscribe, press the bell icon and check out these videos. Before we start, I would also like to tell you that we have a free PDF download and this PDF is a question bank of all the questions that have been asked over the last couple of months for L1 visas. A lot of people have used it, found it extremely useful, so do grab a copy of it. The link for this PDF is in the description box below. Coming back to today's video. So today's video is going to be a real visa experience video and I have with me Anurj and Rohani. Anurj went to US on a L1A visa and his wife Rohani joined him on an L2. And in this video, they are sharing their entire visa journey. So Anurj is going to tell us about the entire process, how exactly it started, how much time it took for the petition to get approved, for him to get the visa slurred. Then he talks about his visa experience, how he prepared for the same, what were the questions asked and he's also sharing with us some extra tips, tricks and as a bonus also telling us about life in the US and what the path ahead looks like. In addition to all of this, his wife Rohani is going to join us and talk about L2 visa experience. I feel that this is a part of the visa experience, which is often overlooked, but if you are applying as an L2, you too need to prepare to a certain extent and keep your profile and how exactly you're going to present that to the visa officer in mind. So all of this is being covered in this visa experience. Let's jump right into it. So hi guys, today I have with me Anurj and his wife will join us shortly. So they are in New York currently on L1 and L2 visa and he's here to share his entire experience right from preparation to what actually happened in the interview and also have some special guidelines and tips for all of you are going to be appearing for the interview soon. So Anurj, what's up, how are you? Hey Shashi, hi, nice to see you. How's New York? Yeah, long time. New York is good, we're just dealing with a bit of cold. The winters are really long and harsh. Extended winters. Yeah, for special people in Bangalore, I'm sure you would not know what winters are. I know. Yeah, like spoils and good weather. So starting with your background, so you basically worked in India for some years and then moved on an inter-company transfer right for the financial institution. So how was the entire process? Like how long did you know, right from the fact that you came to know that there is this opportunity available to finally getting to the visa interview itself? So how much time and effort did this process take? So let's start with that, yeah. So to start with, I applied for L1 visa. So within L1, there are two categories, L1A and L2B. So L1A is for managerial experience. If you had a managerial experience in the company, that is transferring you abroad and then you are going to a managerial role in the foreign country also. Then that's when you apply for L1A visa. So mine was L1A and the entire process, I think it took around five to six months starting from when I was being communicated by the lawyers that the process will start and I was assigned a lawyer till the time I actually flew. So the process, so in L1A mostly the company assigns a lawyer which is supposed to take care of the documentation and process and file the petition with the USCIS. So that started and preparing the petition, I would say that takes a long time because there are a number of questions which are being asked about your job description. What do you do about your personal information, etc. So that takes time. And then after that is done, you file for one DS160 and then you pay the fees, you take an appointment. And between the petition filing and the DS160 Getting the appointment. Getting the appointment. Most likely the petition will get approved because the lawyer's file for premium processing does not take that much time. So then you have to really prepare for the interview because that is when you don't know what they are going to ask. So this process took approximately 5-6 months. Getting till the visa interview. So getting till the visa interview and getting the passport back. So from the starting till that time it took 16th and maybe it's taking slightly more during these times, maybe it was shorter or the things will improve and the time will reduce actually when things become getting longer. So coming to the interview, the process is slightly different for blanket applications and for cases like you. So how much preparation was done from the company's side and how much effort did you actually put into your research and figure out that okay, this is how I have to be ready for it. So companies normally they have very set documentation or the questions they ask for. And I don't know but lawyers do not actually help you with the interview. They just tell you what is the visa type and they ask for the documents. Then you actually have to go online and talk to people who have the similar kind of experiences to understand what are the questions which would be asked. So for example in L1A, the lawyers never mentioned that they would be probing around your managerial experience. So in the interview they want to understand if you're actually manager or if you're just an individual contributor, specialist who will do that kind of a job. So the lawyers will not or like in my case the lawyers did not mention that. Okay, so the owners wasn't you to figure out? The owners wasn't me to understand what kind of questions they might ask, what kind of things they want to uncover. Okay, so you prepared, you had like an idea of what to do for the interview and you also applied with your wife. So there's a lot of confusion which people face which I get a lot of questions that should be like apply for L1, get our visa and then the dependent should go or both go together. Like in my opinion, there's no difference. I think L1 and L2, they go together. It's like a much more sorted process but you both applied together, right? Like you went in like one single interview. So what is your opinion on this? That said, I think applying together is definitely better because if L1 gets approved, most likely L2 will also get approved. And it also reduces the time because when you file for L2, you again have to do very similar documentation, provide your wife's documentation again. So filing together definitely reduces the time. And I don't know what's the impact on the decision but most likely it will only benefit. Right, there's no harm in applying together. So your interview was in Delhi, right? Delhi Consulate? Mine was in Delhi. It was an individual process, it was in Delhi. Okay, so what was the actual interview like, right? What did you observe and what questions were asked to you? So they asked a lot about what do I do? What will I be doing? And in most of the answers, I mentioned that I manage or I get things done or I manage these set of people who do this and that and etc. So a few questions were about what do I do and what I'll be doing. Okay. Then there were questions about my experience, how long have been with the company? Why do you think is the right role for you? So they also want to understand that it is a critical position about it. If it's not critical, then they may say that there's no need for it. There's no need for you, right. So they also try to understand that critical is the position. So I would say that some thought also went in that direction. And then mostly about my wife. So my wife was also there for the interview and they asked her a few questions about actually I have her here with me. So why does she answer that? So what was after you? As you can see, I mean, I didn't participate in any organization for L1. But definitely during the interview, they wanted to know if I planned to work in the US. And I did say that, yeah, I did plan to work in the US. I would apply for a work authorization after I got there. They asked me what I was doing that time in India where I was working and the move and everything. And I think finally they ended by asking us how many years we'd been married. And like it become quite casual, I think to that point. They were like, how many years have you been married? And how many people came to your wedding? And that was it. I think part of it was I really constantly answered that it was 380 and he was like, okay, so you basically mentioned that you're working in India and you plan to continue to work in the US. Because this is also a point that scares a lot of people, right? Though on L2, I mean, it's easier to get work authorization. And that's the whole point of this. But still people are scared that if we show that even the dependent will work, it might show a lesser intent to come back. Did you ever have any such thoughts? So I would say they are different school of thoughts around this. Because people who spoke with some said that don't mention a friend that I want to go there and work. Right now you want to apply for the visa so that there's a possibility of work in the future. You'll go figure out what you want. Yes, so right now we are not exactly how we want to go about it. But once we get it, then there are options for us. So then we can think about if we want to work in the future. Yeah, I think even for the both of us, our whole perspective is we are not going to lie. And I would strongly suggest do not lie on your visa application. The way you describe things is obviously very, very important. But I think if you're lying or manipulating some facts, it sort of comes across. And so we wanted to upfront say, yes, I plan to work. And it might not be the best strategy or the best even approach for someone. People might want to take some time off and so say what it is like. Right. Okay. So really depends on the case to case and individual and how comfortable you feel essentially there like what you're saying. Okay, fine. Thanks Rohani. So coming back to your interview, the one thing which I want to understand like the two questions that you mentioned in the beginning, that's essentially the crux of it. What are you doing in India and what will you do in US and why are you required there. And in some cases recently, they've even started asking what will happen if you don't go there. Did you like focus on the expertise that you have built in this company over the years and say that because of this, I would be the best person for this job or did you like pinpoint to some specific task or role in the US that was waiting. Which it totally depends on the role that you're going for. So in my case, what I was doing in India was slightly different than what I would be doing in the US in particular as a function. But obviously the core skills still remain the same. So I tried to link the skills that I acquired in India plus my people leadership experience and how could it help the role in the US. But if you think about it, the question you asked, right? What will happen if you don't go there versus how critical are you for the role? These are similar questions in themselves. So you have to justify, how does the skills required for the role that you're going for is very closely tied up with the skills that you have. And I don't know if they further want to ask, do they don't have any such people in the US for that. So that would be something which is- They do ask. They do. Yes. Why not someone in the US office, right? So these are the type of questions that we are seeing recently, like off late. A, what is your expertise, what's your specialization? Buy you and what will happen if you don't go there. So very closely, but different questions. So I think like you mentioned, showing your expertise, the special skills plus depending on which visa category, like your managerial experience in your case was important for someone with L1B. Maybe the technical expertise that might have more value. But one has to be really clear about these two, three points essentially. They have to think about very carefully how do you word your answer and what kind of words you use, what kind of job description you're describing. One has to be really careful about all these. You have to be also very calm when the person is talking to you because he's interviewing you, but he's just talking to you, right? Asking for what kind of stuff you'll do. So most likely you'll be the answer, even if you're not prepared. But the reason that you should be prepared is it just helps you with the answer. It just makes sure that you are calm and composed by answering the question. You don't actually screw up. You don't say something that you don't, which you never. It's basically an interaction. So it should be like a calm, friendly interaction for which you have to know that, okay, this is what I need to say in this one. So make sure that you don't, you just use the right words. That's the advice I give. Okay, great. And one last thing, what is the path ahead? Like a lot of people are also really interested to know that, okay, once you're there on L1, right? What for somebody who wants to sort of think of US as an option in the long term. So how does that path look like and how easy or difficult is that? So for L1 A visa, actually it's much easier compared to say L1 B. And it also depends from company to company. Some companies, the moment you come after six months or one year, they file for the green card. And if for example, right now, if L1 A files for green card, that's AB1 category. And the green card duration or the processing time is under two years. Whereas L1 B, it will be somewhere around five years. So there's a lot of difference between the green card processing time for L1 A, L1 B. But definitely that's a good option if you still want to see yourself in the US for a long time. Because for example, for H1, I don't know, I don't know people who have been in the US. So L1 A, L1 B visas are definitely much better in that respect. Okay, great. All right. Okay, Anurj, thank you so much. I'm wishing you all the best for your stay in New York. Thank you, Shachi. Hope to see you soon. Bye. Yes. So I hope you found this entire visa experience useful. If you have any more questions for Anurj or for me, leave them in the comment section below. You can also DM me on Instagram. My Instagram handle is at shachi.man. If you do want to prepare with me, feel free to book a one-to-one session. The link for this one-to-one session is in the description box below. This one-to-one session will help you with all aspects of your visa interview. Right from reviewing your DS160 form, answer structuring based on your profile, and of course, giving you some practice through some mock sessions. So all of this is covered. Check the link in the description box for the same. And that's all for this video. Thank you so much for watching. Don't forget to get your free PDF. And there are a couple more useful videos planned for the L1 visas. So make sure that you subscribe and hit the bell icon. I'll see you in the next one, signing off for now. Bye.