Treaty

To be classified as an E-2 treaty investor, the alien must be from a country which has a qualified treaty with the U.S. In other words, this treaty must be able to confer treaty visa eligibility.

Substantial Investment

Second, the investor must show that he has either made a substantial investment or is actively in the process of making a substantial investment in the enterprise. There is no statutory minimum for the requirement of “substantial” investment. However, the investment must be substantially proportional to the total cost of an established business or the total cost of establishing a new business.

According to our experience, the invested amount varies from business to business. For a business in service field like accounting firm or law firm, the investment amount can be as low as $40,000.00 and the applicant can still obtain the E-2 approval since the investment for such business is mostly in human resources, rather than in properties. For business like restaurant, $70,000 or above is ordinarily acceptable to the INS. If the alien invests over $100,000.00 in the enterprise, the investment is generally qualified for E-2 status. However, again, there is no specific standard set in the immigration rules. Our professionals, nevertheless, will provide you a generally reliable guideline in evaluating your investment in the U.S.

Control in Invested Enterprise

Third, the investor must have a controlling interest in the enterprise. In another word, the investor must have at least 50 percent of shareholding in the enterprise.

It is noteworthy that the immigration rules do not provide limitation on the entity type of the invested enterprise. The investor can freely choose among the corporate entities allowed in the state he wishes to invest.

Investment More Than Marginal

Fourth, the enterprise for which investment is made must be more than “marginal”. This vague standard can be met by showing that the investment will return more than just enough income to provide living for the treaty investor and his family. As such, if the alien’s invested business will only generate a few thousand dollars of income, the business will have problem meeting the qualification for E-2 application.

Alternatively, the treaty investor may show that the investment will create more jobs locally or that the return from the newly created business or expanded business will have a significant impact on the local economy.

An initial two-year period of stay is granted to E-2 visa holders. As above stated, extension can be made almost indefinitely as far as the invested business exists. Besides, even though the initial application is made for one invested enterprise, the E-2 applicant can change his business in later days. Needless to say, the new business has to meet the E-2 standard too.

Employees of treaty trader can also be classified as E-2 if the employee is or will be working in executive, managerial, or supervisory capacity, or if the employee will render essential services to the operation of the enterprise. To qualify, the employee must have the nationality of the treaty country, and must intend to depart the U.S. upon expiration of the principal alien’s E-2 status. However, the employee is not required to have worked for the enterprise previously. It is therefore possible for one invested enterprise to sponsor more than one family of E-2s.

In addition, family members of E-2 are entitled to the same E-2 classification. Furthermore, it is not required that the spouse or child of E-2 must have the nationality of the treaty country. Spouse and children do not have authorization to work in the U.S.

(15-DAY PROCESSING)

Nationals from the following countries can apply for E-2 status and visa:

If the alien is in the U.S., the E-2 application can be filed to the Service Center of INS that has jurisdiction over the invested enterprise. The alien can obtain change of status upon receiving the approval. Or the investor can choose to go to the selected U.S. embassy in Mexico or Canada for visa application directly. If the alien investor is in his home country, then he can go to the U.S. consulate in his country with all documents for E-2 visa application. The document required for E-2 application is extensive. The applicant must be ready to explain about the nature of the business and investment.

(15-DAY PROCESSING)

From July 2001 a "Premium Process Program" is implemented for speeding processing of certain non-immigrant employment-based applications. Under this program, if the applicant is willing to pay an additional $1,000.00 "premium" to the INS, the INS will process the application within 15 days after its receipt of the application. The applicant will receive either an approval or a Request for Additional Evidence within 15 days after INS receives the application. If the application is eventually rejected, the INS will refund the paid premium.

Currently, this program applies to visa types like H-1, L-1, E-2, and O-1 applications. Certainly, for those who need to obtain the status within a short period of time, it has provided a very convenient route.

Unfortunately, the status of E-2 itself does not lead to permanent residency. Hence, no matter how long the alien is in the status, he will not become a permanent resident just by being in this status. In other words, the alien will have to go through other path, either family-based or employment-based immigration, to obtain permanent residency. For route to permanent residency, please refer to other section of our site.