E2 Treaty Investor Visa |
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The E2 Treaty Investor Visa is a nonimmigrant visa allowing nationals of treaty countries the opportunity to live and work in the United States following an investment of a substantial amount of capital in a business for which they have significant control over. Additionally, employees who share the same nationality as the treaty country can be sent to live and work in the US as E2 employees.
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What are the E2 investor visa requirements? |
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The investor must be a national of a treaty country. The E2 visa is only available to applicants holding citizenship in certain countries. All but five EU member states maintain an E2 treaty with the United States, as well as numerous other countries across the world. For a complete list of E2 treaty countries please visit the US Department of State website.
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The investor must have invested (or be in the process of investing) a substantial amount of money in their US enterprise. This requirement is often misunderstood and the topic of much discussion. The most common question an E2 visa lawyer is asked is, “How much money do I need to invest to qualify for the E2 visa?” The E2 visa rules and regulations do not require any specific minimum investment. The appropriate investment is the amount of money it takes to make the US enterprise operational. As such, the amount of investment required will depend entirely on the specific business an E2 investor creates. For example, if a potential investor wishes to establish a boutique hotel, and it will take approximately $500,000 USD to get that business running, then the appropriate investment is $500,000 USD. Alternatively, if an investor wants to create a small IT consultancy company and requires only $60,000 USD to do so, then the appropriate investment is $60,000 USD.
Unfortunately, there are many immigration lawyers who incorrectly advise clients they must invest a minimum $100,000 USD or even $250,000 USD to successfully obtain an E2 investor visa. This is simply not true. While it’s important to ensure the investment meets the substantiality requirement for the E2 category, it is possible to have the visa approved with an investment of $50,000 USD. In addition to the above requirements, the investor must be coming to the US in order to direct and develop the E2 business. This requirement is interpreted to mean that the E2 investor must own at least 50% of treaty enterprise. It is also possible to apply with another E2 applicant as treaty co-investors, whereby each investor owns 50% of the business. There is no need that the investors be from the same country, as long as they are nationals of a treaty country. In fact, it may be beneficial for the E2 company to be registered as having the ownership from two different countries when it comes to sending E2 employees to work in the US at a later date. For example, if an E2 company is owned 50% by Belgian nationals and 50% by French nationals, once registered with a US embassy, they can subsequently send both French and Belgian nationals to work for the company as E2 employees provided they will serve in an executive, managerial, or specialized position. |
The Barella Global Advantage |
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The E2 investor visa is applied for at the consular level – that is, at a local US embassy or consulate, depending on where you reside. Each consular posts has its own set of requirements for how the application should be presented. Often, US immigration attorneys based in the United States have little or no experience with filing E2 visas through the various embassies and consulates given their location in the US. While this doesn’t necessarily mean they are unqualified to handle the matter on behalf of a client, we strongly recommend retaining a US immigration lawyer based abroad to file the application. Barella Global maintains offices in Brussels and London, and has a great deal of experience filing E2 investor visas throughout the European consular posts.
While the E2 visa is a nonimmigrant visa – meaning it does not lead directly to a green card, an investor may apply to renew their visa indefinitely. It is possible to eventually obtain permanent resident status in the future by seeking an alternative visa category once inside the US. Additionally, eligible family members (spouse and unmarried children under the age of twenty-one) may obtain derivative visas to join the principal investor in the United States. The spouse of an E2 investor is also eligible to apply for employment authorization. Contact our Brussels or London office to arrange a consultation with one of our E2 visa lawyers. |
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