A greater number of companies in Brazil have internationalized their business to the United States.This is what a survey by AG Immigration, an immigration law firm specialized in green cards, conducted from information from the US State Department, points out.
Between January and May this year, 4,179 l Visas US citizens were issued an increase of 14.4% over the first five months of 2023. The L visa is intended for the transfer of executives from multinationals and opening companies in the US territory.
The document allows foreign nationals and their dependents to go to the U. S. to open branches, subsidiaries or affiliates of their business, which is particularly useful for companies that want to expand their operations to the largest consumer market in the world.
“In some cases, when there is already an American operation of the Brazilian company, the L visa can also be used to take employees from Brazil to the United States”, explains businesswoman Leda Oliveira, CEO of AG Immigration, also noting that initially, the visa allows the person to stay from 5 to 7 years in the country.
“It is common, however, that after a while the visa beneficiary requests permanent residence (the so-called green card) to live here and for good”, highlights Leda, who has lived in the country for 14 years, having entered precisely with the L visa.
Currently, the US has 8.1 million open jobs, but only 6.6 million unemployed people, according to data from the US Department of Labor. It is one of the lowest unemployment rates in history. Even with this scenario, which inflates wages and makes hiring difficult, still companies seek the US to expand their business, because of the high purchasing power of Americans.
Brazil is the second country that receives the L visa, behind only India, which had 18,508 permits issued between January and May 2024. China (4,117), Mexico (3,074) and Japan (3,046) complete the top five rankings.
According to the CEO of AG Immigration, the popularity of the L visa among Brazilian entrepreneurs and executives also reflects the brain drain that has been observed in recent years. “Wages in the US are very high compared to Brazil, so highly qualified professionals end up being attracted by this” scenario, he says.
Last year, 28,050 Brazilians received the green card, the highest volume ever recorded by the US government.
Countries receiving the most L visa from the USA (jan-may/2024)
- India: 18.508
- Brazil; 4.179
- China: 4.117
- Mexico: 3.074
- Japan: 3.046
- South Korea: 2.938
- Great Britain and Northern Ireland: 2.625
- France: 2.527
- Germany: 1.644
- Israel: 1.097
Issuance of the US L visa for Brazilians (jan-may 2018-2024)
