Once the U.S. entity exists, has secured its premises and can show the financial ability to operate and to pay her. New-office petitions require that evidence at filing, and the initial approval is for one year, after which the plant must show it is operating as described.
The plant does not need to be running; it needs to be real
The new-office rule does not demand a working freezer line, but it does demand secured physical premises, a defined U.S. entity with a qualifying relationship to the Kent company, and financial evidence that the operation can begin and can support the transferee. Hypothetical example: the processor has incorporated the subsidiary, signed a lease on an industrial building and ordered equipment with a delivery date four months out. The petition can be filed on that record, describing the timetable and her role in commissioning the line, provided her qualifying year abroad is already complete. The initial approval will run one year. At extension the company must show the plant is doing business, which for a specialized-knowledge role means the process she brought is actually in use. Filing before the lease is signed wastes the fee; waiting until the line is operating wastes the months in which her knowledge is most needed.
Hypothetical example: a marine-battery manufacturer has ordered equipment for a U.S. facility but cannot operate the line until installation finishes. The first review identifies whether the transferee has concrete pre-opening duties that require the claimed knowledge, such as configuring internal quality controls or training the startup team. If the role begins only after an uncertain future milestone, the petition should explain that timing candidly. Equipment orders alone do not describe a qualifying assignment.