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BALDWIN · L-1B FIELD GUIDE

Does knowing an old system better than new hires establish L-1B?

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THE DIRECT ANSWER

It may be relevant, but the comparison must explain qualifying knowledge rather than simply seniority.

Identify what the assignment requires

Describe the internal configuration, process or service knowledge the migration actually needs and how the applicant acquired it. Explain concrete decisions that use it. Avoid assuming that every experienced employee qualifies or that the knowledge must always be secret to be considered.

The regulation defines specialized knowledge as special knowledge of the petitioning organization's product, service, research, equipment, techniques, management or other interests and its application in international markets, or an advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the organization's processes and procedures. The knowledge showing rests on either special knowledge of the employer's products, services or their application, or an advanced level of knowledge of the employer's processes and procedures, and neither limb is satisfied by long service or general competence in a widely available technology. Specialized knowledge is not established by skill or seniority on its own: knowledge common within the industry, or that a competent professional could acquire elsewhere within a reasonable period, generally falls outside it however valuable the employer finds it.