E-2 TREATY INVESTOR VISA
REVIEW:
Long term temporary visa available to nationals of 60+ treaty countries who invest in a U.S. business. Investment must be enough to set up a viable business. Visa granted for up to 5 years at a time and renewable indefinitely so long as visa requirements continue to be met.
REQUIREMENTS:
| 1. | Investor is a citizen of a treaty nation - see list of 60+ countries below | |
| 2. | Investor has committed a substantial sum to a U.S. enterprise | |
| a. | Must be enough to set up a viable business; no specified dollar figure although $100,000+ is a reasonable rule of thumb | |
| b. | May include equipment or inventory in investment as well as cash | |
| c. | Investment must be at risk; may not count borrowed funds that are secured by the U.S. business' assets | |
| d. | Investment must represent a sufficiently high proportion of the set-up or purchase cost e.g.. nearly 100% for a business that cost less than $100,000 to set up or purchase, 60% for a business costing $500,000, and a lower required proportion for more costly businesses | |
| 3. |
Investor must control the business e.g.. at least 50% ownership interest | |
| 4. | Real and active business ready to open | |
| a. | U.S. business must produce a product or service; idle speculative investments will not qualify | |
| 5. | U.S. business must do more than provide investor and his family with a livelihood | |
| a. | Employ more U.S. workers | |
| b. | Generate more income than investor and family needs | |
| c. | Investor does not rely on business income because he/she has other assets and/or sources of income | |
| 6. | Certain employees are also eligible for E-2 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 | |
| d. | U.S. business is owned, directly or indirectly, by nationals of the same treaty country as the employee. Such owner(s) must either reside outside the U.S. or inside the U.S. in E status. | |
| 7. | Visa application submitted to U.S. Embassy or Consulate in treaty country | |
| 8. | 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 | |
| 9. | Spouses and children (under 21) may be granted E-2 visas to reside and/or study. Spouses may also apply for work authorization. | |
COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR TREATY VISASTreaties 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** |