E2 Visa

[jons_wifey 22]

How many employees do you need to hire under the visa? could it just be 1 person? also, How much do you have to pay your employees?? minimum wage okay??

or are my questions all relevant to the type of business??

This is not for myself but for my brother who wants to invest his money into operating a business here.

No I cannot petition him just yet ( still a GC holder).

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

How many employees do you need to hire under the visa? could it just be 1 person? also, How much do you have to pay your employees?? minimum wage okay??

or are my questions all relevant to the type of business??

This is not for myself but for my brother who wants to invest his money into operating a business here.

No I cannot petition him just yet ( still a GC holder).

There is no minimum number of employees. It's a discretionary call by the CO who evaluates the visa application, but obviously employing a large number of US citizens would be a factor in favor of visa approval. Likewise, the wage level is not really relevant, but it must meet statutory minimums. The requirement that an E-2 investor must be "directing or developing" their investment implies that there must be at least some employees who are US citizens or LPR's.

E-2 investments can't be speculative. This means you can't waive cash in front of the CO and claim you're going to open a business in the US once you get the visa. The business must already exist, or substantial steps must have already been taken to establish the business. This means that some risk capital must have already been committed to the business. If the investor still needs to figure out what sort of business they want to operate or scout out locations to set up a business then a B-1 business visitors visa is more appropriate.

E-2 investments must be substantial. It's highly unlikely they'd approve an E-2 visa for an investor with less than $40K or $50K, and amounts under $100K would require a pretty strong case to get a visa.

E-2 investment capital must not be marginal with respect to the total investment. An E-2 investor usually needs to have at least 50% cash equity in the business.

An E-2 investor cannot be a passive participant in the operation of the business. They must be actively involved in managing the business (otherwise their presence in the US isn't required), and they must have the business skills to successfully perform their job.

A good lawyer would be a smart first investment.