Skip to content
GEORGINA · L-1A FIELD GUIDE

Which documents matter most for a new-office extension?

Sources checked:

THE DIRECT ANSWER

Current operating records, financial evidence, staffing and payroll information, and a detailed account of actual managerial or executive duties are central. The corporate relationship and foreign operations also need continued support.

Show a complete period

Organize records across the approval year rather than collecting only the most recent month. Explain the nature of goods or services and how workers support delivery. Compare actual duties with the original plan, identifying material changes without rewriting history.

The exact packet should follow counsel’s assessment and current filing instructions; a renewed lease or fresh business plan alone does not establish all extension requirements. Show a complete period rather than a favourable moment, since a snapshot taken at the strongest point invites the question of what the rest of the year looked like. Assemble evidence distributed across the whole term: financial statements and management accounts, bank activity, invoices and contracts across the months, payroll records showing the workforce as it grew, tax filings, the lease and evidence of occupation, and material showing the individual performing the role claimed.

Where activity was uneven, present it as it was and explain the pattern. Include the foreign entity's continuing operations on the same basis, since that relationship remains relevant. A file assembled from records generated as the year progressed is straightforward to produce; one built from a scramble in the final weeks generally shows it.