E-2 Investor Visa
An E-2 Visa is a non-immigrant Visa for business owners who wish to start a company in the United States as well as develop and personally direct the operations. An E-2 Visa cannot be used to ultimately obtain permanent residency, however, the E-2 Visa does not have an absolute termination date, thus a person on an E-2 Visa can live in the United States indefinitely. In order to qualify for this Visa, you must either start a business or buy a business that you plan to run. The investment amount depends on the type of business you start. For example, if you start a business with low overhead and low start up costs, the amount of investment can be as low as $50,000. If you start a manufacturing plant, the required investment amount would be much higher amount, close to $500,000.00 or more due to the increased need for overhead and start of capital. The E-2 Visa is unlimited as long as you continue to run the business. Once you stop running the business, the E-2 Visa is no longer valid. Another advantage to the E-2 Visa is that your spouse and children are also able to come into the country and your spouse may obtain a work authorization to have gainful employment in any field in the United States.
EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa
An EB-5 Visa is a visa option if you have a large amount of capital. The EB-5 Visa is often referred to as the million dollar Green Card. The main advantage of this Visa is that you and your immediate family are granted permanent residency. However, the down side is that the Visa requires a substantial investment of close to $1,000,00.00 or more. The EB-5 law is a very complex legal area and the Visa petition requires extensive documentation.
There are 5 main criteria to get an EB-5 Visa as follows:
1. You must invest or be actively in the process of investing either $1,000,000 in a city settings, or US $500,000 in rural settings;
2. You must show that the funds come from a legitimate source
3. The entire amount of the investment must be active or at risk (this means that you cannot just be thinking about buying a business and you have to put capital up that could be lost)
4. You must make the investment in a “new” or “existing business enterprise”; and
5. You must demonstrate that the investment directly or indirectly results in the creation or preservation of ten full time jobs.
Obviously, the EB-5 Visa is for investors or entrepreneurs who want to start or invest in mid size to larger companies. The rewards for making such an investment in the Unites States can be life changing for the business owner (obtaining permanent residency and ultimately United States Citizenship for the owner and his or her family) as well as the employees who the owner/entrepreneur employ and can also help the community in which the business is located.
H-1B Visa
The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits a company to hire workers in specialty occupations. This visa category requires that the beneficiary (the foreign worker) have a Bachelor’s degree, and the Petitioner (the U.S. company) can employ the worker for up to six years. In the case of a Business Owner, Investor or Entrepreneur, the petitioner and the beneficiary are often the same person but a business owner can use this Visa to sponsor his employees also. An H-1B Visa can be a complex visa for a Business Owner if the owner is also the beneficiary. There are strict laws that govern whether or not a person who has an ownership interest in a company can sponsor themselves for an H-1B Visa. While difficult, it is not impossible and can be done with the help of a qualified immigration specialist.
The H1-B Visa can also be used by an entrepreneur/owner/investor who has a business established in the United States and wishes to bring in talent from other countries if you are unable to find the talent you need in the United States.
L-Visa
The L-Visa allows a company to transfer an executive or manager from one of its affiliated foreign offices to one of its offices in the United States. This classification also enables a foreign company, which does not yet have an affiliate U.S. office to send an executive or manager to the United States with the purpose of establishing one. As such, this visa can be used by foreign entrepreneurs, investors, & business owners who want to move either themselves or their employees to the U.S.
To qualify for L-1 classification, the employer must:
1. Have a qualifying relationship with a foreign company; and
2. Currently be, or will be, doing business as an employer in the U.S. and in at least one other country directly for the duration of the beneficiary’s stay in the United States as an L-1.
If you have questions about investing in or starting a business in the United States, please call The Law Office of Robin J. Gray at (610) 777-1431 or contact us through our website at robinjgraylaw.com. We are here to meet your business and immigration needs.
