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Anonymous A

on Mar 21, 2025

Global

L1 Visa use in consulting firms

Does anyone have experience with their firm using the L1 to transfer you to an office in the USA? Does this happen often or easily?

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Top answer

Alessa

Coach

on Mar 26, 2025

xMcKinsey & Company | xBCG | xRB | >400 coachings | feel free to schedule an intro call for free

Hey there ?,

Yes—L1 visas are used in consulting, but it’s usually not the default path unless you’re already working at the firm outside the US and have been with them for at least 1 continuous year. Here’s how it works:

– Firms like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Strategy& and others do use L1s, especially for experienced consultants or internal transfers
– It’s often used for roles requiring specialized knowledge or firm-specific expertise, e.g., capability center or expert track transfers
– It's less common at junior levels, and depends heavily on demand in the US office + your internal reputation

So yes, it’s possible—but generally requires you to have been performing well and requested by a US team, or driven through internal transfer channels.

If you’re thinking about planning a move or want help positioning yourself for that path, I’d be happy to support ?

Best,
Alessa ?

Andreas

Coach

on Mar 22, 2025

BCG Principal, 150+ BCG interviews (incl. final rounds), Post-MBA offers from All Big 3 / MBB

Hey there!

BCG explored using an L1 for me (happy to chat through the specifics of my case (free of charge), I do not want to publicly post them here :))

BCG uses L1s often to bring people to the US.

Cheers,

Andreas

Florian

Coach

on Mar 24, 2025

1400 5-star reviews across platforms | 600+ offers | Highest-rated case book on Amazon | Uni lecturer in US, Asia, EU

Hi there,

No direct experience with it but seen it happen a few times.

What's important is to generate pull from the target office and a push from your current office (partner support through helping out, projects in the target area, networking, informing mentors and HR) - the rest is a formality.

Cheers,

Florian

Sebastian

Coach

on Mar 23, 2025

Ex-BCG Principal & Senior Recruiter in Germany | 300+ real recruiting interviews at BCG | Free 15min intro call

Hi there,

yes, this does work. I have had an L1 visum to work in the US. Feel free to reach out.

Best,
Sebastian