Monday, August 24, 2009

Investor Visas; How to be Eligible

By Sam McDougall Turner

Moving to the states can be a daunting and overall difficult process. Being granted a visa is not always straight forward either, however there are a few ways to improve the chances of your application being successful. Probably the most common way to achieve this is by choosing an investor visa. There are two kinds, temporary and permanent.

The temporary investor visa is called the E-2.

The E-2 visa is commonly referred to as the temporary green card. This is because there is no top-end limit to the visa term and so extensions and renewals can be applied any number of times providing the conditions of your visa are still met.

The purpose of this visa is to allow foreign people who have invested considerable amounts in the US to relocate there to further develop and run the business or businesses that they have invested in.

To be eligible for the E-2 visa, you must be either the investor, or otherwise an essential employee such as a director or manager of the foreign company that made the investment and you and the large shareholders of the company are nationals in a country that have a long term Treaty of Trade, Friendship and Commerce with the United States.

Executives and other essential employees must be from the same country as the corporation to be eligible for the E-2 visa. You will have to show that you are in the process of making an investment or that in investment has already been made.

In short, the E-2 visa is most suited to those who are looking to invest a considerable sum of money in order to purchase all or part of an existing company, or to set up a new company. As the investor is expected to take an active role in the direction and management of the business, the E-2 visa is not suitable for silent investors.

Investing in a US company and qualifying for a visa is a notoriously complex task, it is therefore strongly advisable to seek professional, competent legal advice on the criteria you must meet in order to qualify before making the investment.

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