Compensation alone does not establish the duties standard. Explain actual authority and execution responsibilities.
Keep financial evidence in context
A salary figure may be relevant without deciding the category.
Use the operating budget to verify the structure behind the proposed role: salaries or vendor costs should correspond to people performing routine work, while the transferee’s forecast duties should show authority over goals, policy, personnel, or an essential function. An initial new-office petition does not require the U.S. entity to operate yet, but it needs secured physical premises and, for L-1A, evidence addressing the investment size and the foreign entity’s financial ability to support the proposed operation. Where an employer wants a figure before committing, give two: the published charges checked on the day, and an estimate of the internal hours, with the note that a second round after a request for evidence costs roughly what the first assembly cost. Keep filing fees, translation, and professional-preparation costs in a separate ledger from any commercial spending ceiling; neither figure is an investment threshold or a substitute for primarily managerial or executive duties.