Only after the qualifying relationship exists and can be documented, and after the transferee's continuous qualifying year abroad is complete and within the preceding three years. Processing time then depends on the route chosen and whether premium processing is used.
Two clocks have to be finished before a third one starts
Hypothetical example: the purchase closes in March and the company wants the director in place for the summer pack. Work backwards. First, the corporate relationship has to be real on the date of filing, which means the ownership documents are executed, not drafted.
Second, the qualifying year abroad has to be complete and to fall within the three years before the petition; if the director recently returned from an unrelated posting, check whether the year is intact. Only then does the filing clock begin, and its length depends on the service centre workload and whether premium processing is requested. A new office, meaning a U.S.
operation less than a year old, is approved initially for one year and is examined again at extension, so the first period may be shorter than the project. Build the production schedule around the later of those dates rather than the earlier one.