Wednesday, September 16, 2009

How to Qualify for an Investor Visa

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 so popular because it can be renewed or extended as many times as you like so long as the conditions of your visa being granted in the first place are still being met, such as the investment that qualifies you for an investor visa. For this reason, the E-2 visa has become known as the temporary green card.

This visa allows foreigners who have made substantial investments in the United States to relocate to the United States in order to develop and direct the business operation established by their investments.

You may be eligible for this visa if you are the investor, or if you are an executive, manager or essential employee of the foreign company that made the investment and you and the major shareholders of the company are the nationals of a country that has an ongoing Treaty of Trade, Friendship and Commerce with the United States.

If you are an executive or a member of corporate personnel, then you must be a national of the same country as the corporation to qualify. An investment in the USA must have either already been made or that the investment is in progress. So if you posses substantial financial assets, then you could be entitled to the E-2 visa.

The E-2 visa is for those who wish to invest a substantial sum of money either into an existing business for shares, or to start up a new business. The visa is most suited to those intending to play and active part in the running and direction of the business, and therefore may not be suitable for a silent investor.

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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