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How do I answer 'Why can't someone with more experience go to the US?' in my L1 blanket visa interview?

By Shachi Mall· October 26, 2026Updated October 2026· 3 min readL1 Transfer Visa

One of the trickiest questions coming up in L1 blanket interviews right now is this: you have only worked at your current company for two years — so why are you the one going to the US instead of a colleague who has been there longer? Here is exactly how to answer it.

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This question is designed to make you doubt yourself. Do not let it. The visa officer is not trying to trick you — they are trying to understand why you, specifically, are the right person for this role. The answer has two parts, and when you combine them, you have a compelling response that stands on its own.

Step 1: Lead with your total years of experience in the domain

Your tenure at your current company is just one number. Your expertise in the domain is a much bigger one — and that is what the officer actually needs to understand. One of my recent clients had been with his current employer for only one and a half years, but he had worked in the exact same domain for ten years. Once we reframed his answer around that ten-year track record — the similar projects he had handled, the situations he had navigated — the short stint at the current company stopped looking like a weakness. It became irrelevant. If your situation is similar, make sure you are leading with your full domain experience, not just your time at this one company.

Step 2: Identify what is unique about your contribution at your current company

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Even within a shorter tenure, there will be something you have done that nobody else at your company has. Think carefully about this. Maybe you built a specific module for a proprietary tool that no one else has touched. Maybe you are the only person who has been working directly with the client you are being sent to support in the US. Your track record at this company may be shorter than a colleague's, but if you own a piece of work or a relationship that nobody else does, that is your answer. Find that thing and name it clearly.

How to put it all together into one answer

Once you have both pieces, combine them into a single, confident response. The structure looks like this: acknowledge the two years at your current company, immediately pivot to your ten years of domain expertise and the similar projects and clients you have managed across that time, and then land on the specific, unique contribution you make in your current role — the thing that makes you the only person suited for this particular assignment in the US. Something like: 'I have been with my current company for two years, but I have ten years of experience in this domain, during which I have handled many similar projects and clients. In my current organisation, I am the only person responsible for X — no one else has this expertise, and this is exactly what the US role requires.' Fill in the specifics from your own background and you have your answer.

Need help preparing for your L1 blanket interview?

L1 blanket interviews are getting harder. If you want help structuring your answers — including your DS-160 form and full interview preparation — reach out to me directly. I am here to help you walk in prepared and confident.

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Shachi Mall, U.S. visa interview preparation expert

Shachi Mall

U.S. visa interview preparation expert. Has helped 1000+ applicants prepare for F1, B1/B2, H1B, L1 and other non-immigrant visa interviews using the STAMP method.

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