E-1/E-2
Treaty Trader Nonimmigrant Visa
Traders
and investors, their families, and
qualified employees of foreign companies
may be eligible for entry and work
authorization as nonimmigrants under
the E category. An applicant must
be a national of a country that has
a particular commercial treaty with
the United States (see list of qualifying
countries below) and must have principal
investor or "key employee"
status in the qualifying company.
To
qualify, applicants must provide substantial
documentation regarding their investment
and its source, a detailed business
plan that includes information on
revenue and expenses (preferably over
the coming 5 year period), as well
as documentation of the applicant's
ability to direct the particular business
or to work as an "essential employee"
in the US branch of a foreign company
(i.e., a professional level or specialized
knowledge position).
It is essential that an E2 investor
application demonstrate that the investment
is substantial and not marginal (for
individuals, we recommend a minimum
investment of $100,000+). Investments
in a business that merely provide
the applicant with subsistence will
not qualify (for individual applicants,
a detailed budget for the US will
be required along with the application).
An E2 investor must
not depend on income from the investment
as his/her sole source of income unless
such income is far beyond what is
necessary to support the principal
E2 holder and his/her dependents.
Moreover, investments in businesses
that do not at least in the future
intend to employ US workers (US citizens
or permanent residents) are unlikely
to qualify.
E1 treaty traders must document that
the US business is conducting or will
conduct regular trade in goods or
services between the US and the E1
holder's country of nationality.
Other features of the E visa category
include:
- visas
in the E category can be extended
indefinitely as long as the trading
or investment activity in the U.S.
continues;
- E
visas do NOT lead to permanent residence
(the green card) for principal investors
and traders;
- spouses
of E visa holders may apply for
blanket work authorization in the
U.S.; click here
for more information;
- E classification
was not designed for retirees, for
philanthropists as such or for the
employees of nonprofit organizations.
An E business must be an active
business (passive investments will
not qualify) that creates employment
for US workers and/or provides some
other kind of substantial economic
benefit to the US.
Legislation enacted in the spring
of 2005 introduced a new E visa category,
the E-3 nonimmigrant visa for Australian
professionals (to qualify, one must
have the equivalent of a US bachelor's
degree and a job offer in a company
in the US that requires a US bachelor's
degree in a particular area of expertise
related to the position offered).
Click here
for summary of the E-3 provisions.
Also, note that the E-3 program has
not yet been officially implemented.
We will post further information here
as it is issued by the relevant agencies
(expected August or September 2005).
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