L-2 visa: your family comes along, and your partner can start working right away

The transfer is decided at the company. The move is decided at the kitchen table. Is your partner coming, and what will they do for work in America? Where will the kids go to school, and what happens when your eldest turns 21 in two years? The family of an L-1 holder has its own visa, the L-2, and it is more generous than most people expect: your spouse can work from day one, without filing a single application. This guide shows who gets the L-2, how to apply, what it allows and where its limits are.

1Who gets the L-2

The L-2 is open to two groups: the spouse and the unmarried children under 21 of the L-1 holder. They can come with you or join you later (USCIS, L-1A Intracompany Transferee Executive or Manager; 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(L)). Whether you come as an executive on an L-1A or as a specialist on an L-1B makes no difference.

Spouse means legally married. If you live in a committed relationship but are not married, your partner does not get an L-2. For unmarried partners, elderly parents and other household members, the State Department instead provides the B-2 visitor visa, as long as they accompany you for the length of your assignment and leave with you (9 FAM 402.2-4(B)(5)). Nobody can work on a B-2. For some couples, this is the moment the question of marriage becomes a practical one.

Under US law, children means unmarried and under 21. A married child does not qualify, even if younger. Parents, siblings and grandparents do not get an L-2, even if you support them.

2Applying for the L-2: together or later

If your family lives in Europe, each family member applies for their L-2 visa at the US consulate, usually at the same appointment as you. It is based on your approved petition; there is no separate petition for the family. If the family follows later, the consulate must confirm that you are maintaining your L-1 status in the US before it issues the visa (9 FAM 402.12-16(B)).

For the L-2, the consulate mainly checks one thing: the relationship. If the family cannot prove the marriage or parentage, the presumption of immigrant intent applies to them; otherwise it does not. The family does not have to show a residence abroad they have no intention of abandoning for the L-2 (9 FAM 402.12-13). So present proof of marriage and parentage exactly as the consulate asks for it in its document list. With an employer's blanket petition, the consulate annotates the family's visa Blanket L-2 (8 CFR 214.2(l)(5)(ii)(E)).

If a family member is already in the US, for example in another status, they can switch to L-2 status with Form I-539 without leaving the country. Spouse and children go on a single application. If the I-539 is filed together with your petition, USCIS decides on both together (USCIS, I-129 Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker). How the consulate appointment works is covered in the guide Applying for the L-1.

3Working on an L-2: the L-2S code

The law requires the government to authorize the spouse of an L-1 holder to work in the US (8 U.S.C. 1184(c)(2)(E)). Spouses in valid L-2 status are therefore authorized to work by virtue of their status. No separate application needed. The authorization is not tied to any employer or industry, unlike your L-1, which is only valid for the company that filed the petition.

Proof for an employer is the I-94. Since January 30, 2022, USCIS and the border agency CBP have issued I-94s annotated L-2S for spouses. A valid I-94 with L-2S is enough for Form I-9, which every US employer uses to verify work authorization (USCIS, L-1A Intracompany Transferee Executive or Manager). If you have an older I-94 marked only L-2, present it together with the USCIS notice about the new annotation.

An employment authorization card (EAD) is optional. If you want one, for example because it doubles as ID, apply with Form I-765 and pay the fee. For everyday purposes, the I-94 is enough. Check it after every entry: if it says L-2 instead of L-2S, have it corrected before you start a job.

3.1Self-employed on an L-2?

Because the work authorization is not tied to an employer, an L-2 spouse can also build their own business. If you set up a US company for it, that company has a permanent establishment in the US, with all the tax consequences; it starts with US company formation. A freelancer who keeps serving clients back home should clarify before the move where she will be taxed going forward.

4Children: school yes, work no, and the 21st birthday

Children on an L-2 get the annotation L-2Y on their I-94. They may not work unless they have another status or another basis for it (9 FAM 402.12-16(C)). They can, however, go to school. A child with derivative status does not need a student visa, even when attending school in the US (9 FAM 402.1-5(C)).

The hardest limit of the L-2 is the 21st birthday. On that day, the child is no longer a child for L-2 purposes, and their status ends, even if yours continues. Anyone who wants to keep living, studying or working in the US then needs their own status, and must apply for it well in advance. This matters most for families arriving with teenagers: on a seven-year assignment, a child who arrives at 15 hits the limit halfway through. Plan for that day from the start, and look at where the family's green card will stand by then.

If a child marries, their L-2 also ends, regardless of age.

5Duration, extension and the end of the L-1

The L-2 runs parallel to your L-1: same period, same maximum duration (8 CFR 214.2(l)(7)(ii); 9 FAM 402.12-16(A)). If your petition is extended, your family extends their stay in the US with Form I-539. Ideally, file it together with your petition; USCIS then decides on both together, even though there is no premium processing for the I-539 itself (USCIS, How Do I Request Premium Processing). How the extension works and which deadlines apply is covered in the guide to L-1 validity.

5.1The I-539 for the family

One I-539 covers the whole family, as long as everyone is changing or extending the same status or all derive their status from you. One family member files, usually the spouse, and every other family member is listed as a co-applicant and gets their own Form I-539A with all their personal details. Each co-applicant signs their own I-539A; for children under 14, a parent or guardian signs. USCIS may schedule a fingerprint and photo appointment for each applicant and can deny the application if someone misses it (Form I-539 Instructions). Anyone abroad during the process will be told to arrange the appointment through a US consulate or a USCIS office abroad. So plan trips only once the appointments are set.

The L-2 depends on your status. If your employment ends early, the grace period of up to 60 days also applies to your family, once per validity period and at most until the end of the authorized period (8 CFR 214.1(l)(2)). If you are a couple with two incomes in the US, plan for this scenario before it happens.

To travel, every family member needs a valid L-2 visa in their passport. How long it is valid depends on the State Department's reciprocity table for your nationality, not on your petition.

6From L-2 to your own status or a green card

The L-2 is not the end of the road. An L-2 spouse can switch to their own status, such as an H-1B or their own L-1, and starting a green card process does not stand in the way (8 CFR 214.2(l)(16)). For their own L-1, however, time spent as an L-2 in the US does not count as work for the company: the spouse must meet the one year abroad themselves (9 FAM 402.12-11). Conversely, time as an L-2 does not use up any of their later maximum stay as an L-1 (9 FAM 402.12-14(C)). Which visas could work for your partner is shown in our overview of visas for moving to the US.

When it comes to the green card, the family usually goes with you. If you get a green card through an employment-based or investment-based category, your spouse and children are entitled to the same status if they accompany or follow you (8 U.S.C. 1153(d)). For executives on an L-1A, the route is the EB-1C green card. For the children, timing is everything: the earlier the process starts, the less pressure the 21st birthday puts on you. Every route is covered in the guide From L-1 to green card.

7What the L-2 costs

Every family member, children included, pays the $205 visa fee at the consulate; a family of four, you included, pays $820. For a change of status or an extension inside the US, Form I-539 costs $470 on paper and $420 online, per application, even when several family members are listed on it. The optional work permit card costs $520 on paper or $470 online. The steep additional fee under Pub. L. 114-113, charged at the consulate under Blanket L for employers whose US workforce is mostly made up of transferred staff, is not paid by the family (9 FAM 402.12-7(I)).

The law also provides for a Visa Integrity Fee of at least $250 per nonimmigrant visa issued, which includes every L-2 visa (8 U.S.C. 1806). As of October 22, 2026, it does not appear in the State Department's fee schedule, so check before your appointment whether it is being collected. All fees for the L-1 itself, plus four worked examples, are in our guide to L-1 costs, and the overview of the visa is in our L-1 guide.

In short

• The L-2 goes to the legally married spouse and the unmarried children under 21 of an L-1 holder, either together with them or later.
• Spouses on an L-2 can work, for any employer and without a separate application. The proof is the I-94 marked L-2S; a work permit card is optional.
• Children on an L-2 can go to school but cannot work. Their L-2 ends on their 21st birthday.
• The L-2 runs as long as the L-1 and ends with it. Extensions are filed inside the US on Form I-539, ideally together with the petition.
• At the consulate, each family member pays $205. Unmarried partners cannot get an L-2.

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