The United States does a great deal of business with other countries around the world. This requires foreign businessmen and women to come to the country for a variety of reasons. In order for individuals to do so, they must obtain a visa that gives them a certain status. An investor visa lets trade occur between different countries by allowing investors from different countries to come to the United States as self-employed. This is also known as a treaty visa and an E Visa.
Benefits of an Investor Visa
There are many benefits to obtaining an investor visa. It is the only visa available to foreign individuals that allow them to be self-employed within the United States. In addition to this, the spouse and children of the individual applying for an investor visa will also be eligible to apply for an employment authorization visa during their stay. An investor visa does not require previous work experience or a degree and also allows individuals to remain in the country indefinitely.
There are no limitations to the number of investor visas that can be issued. They can be filed directly with the consular post and do not need the approval of the USCIS. Investor visas can be issued for up to 5 years and can be extended in five-year increments as long as the individual is still qualified.
Types of Investor Visas
As previously stated, an investor visa is also called an E Visa. There are two types of E Visas. An E-1 Visa is for an employee of a treaty trader. The aim of this employee is to maintain trade between the United States and the treaty country. The individual must be a national of this treaty country. There are several requirements to receive a visa for this trade:
- Must be a traceable exchange between the U.S. and the treaty country
- The trade must be international and involve goods, services, and money
- Trade must already exist between these countries with ratified trade treaties
- A minimum of 50% of the international trade conducted by the trader must be between the U.S. and that treaty country
- There must be an ongoing flow of transactions over time
- The income from the trade should support the trader and their family
- The employee can hold a managerial or supervisory position or possess certain essential qualifications (particular skills or experience) to the business
- The owner of the enterprise must be a national of the foreign state and own at least 50% of the company
An E-2 visa is for investors of enterprises. In order to qualify for this visa, the applicant must be in the process of investing or have already invested in a United States enterprise. Other requirements consist of:
- The individual must not only have possession of the investment, but they also need to have control of it
- The investment is required to be completely committed to the United States enterprise and is subject to a certain degree of loss if the investment is not successful
- The capital must be the individual’s unsecured personal business capital or capital secured by personal assets
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John Sesini is an experienced immigration attorney with offices in Green Bay and Milwaukee Wisconsin. If you have any questions regarding immigration law matters, please contact the Sesini Law Group, S.C. and schedule your initial consultation with our firm today.