E2 Treaty Investor Visa |
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? |
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 Barella Global Advantage |
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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