Friday, August 14, 2009

Investor Visas; How to be Eligible

By Sam McDougall Turner

Relocation to the United States of America can be a very difficult process. However there are several ways that you can vastly improve your chances of being granted a visa. One of the most common of these is to opt for an investor visa. There are two basis types, temporary and permanent.

The temporary investor visa is called the E-2.

The E-2 visa is popularly known as the Temporary Green Card. The reason for this is that there is no upper limit to the visa term and therefore extensions to your stay and visa renewals can be granted on a limitless number of occasions, provided that the qualifying investment is still in existence and all other conditions for the E-2 visa are still being satisfied.

This visa is for foreign people who have made investments in a US business or businesses to move to the US in order to oversee and direct the businesses that they have invested in.

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.

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.

The E-2 visa may be suitable for those who wish to invest a significant sum of money in order to either purchase an existing business or to set up a new business. The E-2 visa is not suitable for silent investors as the investor is required to play an active role in the management and direction of the investment enterprise.

Because of the unique complexities of investing in a U.S. business, it is highly advisable to seek competent legal advice on the types of investment that may qualify for an E2. After receiving such advice, the next step is likely to be to contact a reputable business broker that has an awareness of the requisite criteria for making a qualifying E-2 investment.

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