The E-2 visa for Bangladeshis

What I wrote in 2021

I'll go straight to the point, wasting time is something I really don't like.

The E-2 visa is a kind of investor visa. Let me say first: this visa gives you the chance to stay in America temporarily, you cannot stay permanently. So what's the catch?

On this visa you can stay in America for a maximum of 5 years at a stretch (in certain cases less). However, you can renew this visa again and again. Each renewal is for a maximum of 2 years. That means you can stay in America for life, but you have to get the visa renewed on time.

Will your family get a visa with you?

Your husband or wife will get the chance to come with you. Your children can come too, but they have to be 21 or younger. The spouse who comes with you can work in America. They have to fill out form I-765.

How much does the E-2 cost?

Since E-2 is an investment visa, you have to have the capacity to invest at least one hundred thousand US dollars. You also have to prove it. Of that total, at least 50 percent has to be your own. The rest can be a loan.

How do I apply?

Before that, you may need to travel to America on a tourist visa, what we call B-1/B-2, more than once. To do business in America you may need to go to understand the market there and for business planning. No harm if you don't. It depends on what you need.

Along with that, you have to plan in a way that the business you are putting money into makes enough profit. And you have to create employment for qualified people located in America.

The first thing to make sure of is that the enterprise you invest in is valid under American law and has no legal trouble. Then you have to show proof of a number of things and fill out forms. You absolutely have to prove that your purpose really is to invest and run a business.

Here is a list of what you have to attach to your E-2 application (not limited to):

1. DOS Form DS-156, Nonimmigrant Visa Application
2. DOS Form DS-156E, Nonimmigrant Treaty Trader / Investor Application
3. DOS Form DS-157, Supplemental Nonimmigrant Visa Application, for all male applicants between the ages of 16 and 45
4. A copy of your passport. Your passport should have at least 6 months validity, and at least one blank page for the visa.
5. Two colour photographs, taken exactly the way American visa photos are taken.
6. The complete plan for your future business investment. You have to prepare this very precisely, so that it states what happens 5, 10 and 20 years after investing now.
7. Attach your CV.
8. Proof that you will be employed at executive level where you are investing, or that you have some critically important skill that will play a major role in the operation of the company or firm.
9. Documents for your investment money and its ownership, or for a loan if you have taken one, along with bank statements, financial records, savings and so on.
10. Proof of the investment you will send to America, such as a bank draft, transfer exchange permit or receipt.
11. Proof of how you are investing where you are investing and how you plan to run the business. This could be an online publication (article), a partnership agreement document, a list of that company's staff, their shares and the company's, staff job titles, employment terms, the company licence, leasing documents and so on.
12. Proof of the investment after you have made it in America. Receipts, bank statements and so on.
13. Proof that the amount of your investment is sufficient. Financial statements, audit reports, tax returns and so on.
14. Proof that the enterprise is not marginal. Show payroll records, IRS Form 941, personal tax returns, accounts of other personal assets and other income.
15. Proof that the business being invested in is a real and conventional business. This can be proved through annual reports, product catalogues, sales literature, news articles and so on.

Head spinning? It seems to me that gathering everything on this list properly is harder work than the hundred thousand dollars. For this I would recommend you hire an American lawyer and do everything under their guidance. These things are very critical and there are many loopholes an ordinary person cannot be expected to know.

Bonus points

1. If you are currently in America legally in nonimmigrant status, you can change status to an E-2 visa.
2. Applying for an E-2 while in America can take 5 to 6 months. It can also be done in 15 days if you spend more on the filing.
3. Applying from outside America, such as from Bangladesh, can take 4 to 6 months. That depends on the American embassy's queue. The E-2 queue is short, so there is a chance of it being very quick.
4. A question may come to mind: where do I find the business to invest in? Keep looking at the various franchises, restaurants, consulting businesses and so on located in America that are being sold, in whole or in part. That is how you find them. A lot of research is needed here. It is not enough to just look at the business. You have to consider where it is located, what the profit is like, the weather, the risk and so on.