THE E-1 TREATY TRADER VISA
REVIEW:
Long term temporary visa available to nationals of 60+ treaty countries to work as executive, supervisor or employee with essential skills for U.S. business conducting substantial trade with treaty country. Visa granted for up to 5 years at a time and renewable indefinitely so long as visa requirements continue to be met.
REQUIREMENTS:
| 1. | Visa applicant is a citizen of a treaty nation - see list of 60+ countries below | ||
| 2. | U.S. business must be 50% or more owned by treaty nationals | ||
| 3. | Substantial existing trade with treaty country | ||
| a. | Must be an existing exchange of money, goods, or services between the U.S. and treaty country | ||
| i. | Binding contracts may constitute existing trade | ||
| b. | More than 50% of U.S. business' trade must be between the U.S. and treaty country | ||
| c. | Substantiality of trade is determined by the volume and size of transactions | ||
| 4. | Employees eligible for E-1 visas | ||
| a. | Executive and supervisory employees | ||
| b. | Employees with essential skills | ||
| c. | Visa may only be granted for 1 or 2 years if the essential skills are readily transferable to a U.S. worker | ||
| 5. | Visa application submitted to U.S. Embassy or Consulate in treaty country | ||
| 6. | Visa granted for up to 5 years at a time depending on the treaty country | ||
| a. | May be renewed for further periods so long as visa requirements continue to be met | ||
| 7. | Spouses and children (under 21) may be granted E-1 visas to reside and/or study. Spouses may also apply for work authorization. | ||
Treaties marked with one asterisk (*) contain only treaty trader provisions and allow only E1 issuance, not E2. Treaties marked with two asterisks (**) contain only treaty investor provisions and allow only E2 issuance, not E1.
| ARGENTINA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA BANGLADESH** BELGIUM BOLIVIA* BRUNEI* BULGARIA** CAMEROON** CANADA CHINA (Taiwan) COLOMBIA CONGO** COSTA RICA CZECH REPUBLIC** DENMARK* EGYPT** ESTONIA* ETHIOPIA FINLAND FRANCE GERMANY (FRG) GREECE* GRENADA** HONDURAS IRAN IRELAND ISRAEL* ITALY JAPAN KAZAKHSTAN** |
KOREA KYRGYZSTAN** LATVIA* LIBERIA LUXEMBOURG MEXICO MOROCCO** NETHERLANDS NORWAY OMAN PAKISTAN PANAMA** PARAGUAY PHILIPPINES POLAND** ROMANIA** SENEGAL** SLOVAK REPUBLIC** SPAIN SRI LANKA** SURINAME SWITZERLAND SWEDEN THAILAND TOGO TUNISIA** TURKEY UNITED KINGDOM YUGOSLAVIA ZAIRE** |