E-2 Visa Franchises Under $250K: Often Considered by E-2 Investors

What USCIS says, and what this page does not decide

• The investor must be a national of a treaty country. The State Department keeps the list.

  Source: State Department treaty countries (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/fees/treaty.html).

• USCIS says a "substantial" investment is relative: "the lower the cost of the enterprise, the higher, proportionately, the investment must be." There is no fixed dollar minimum on the USCIS page.

  Source: USCIS: E-2 Treaty Investors (https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/e-2-treaty-investors).

• The enterprise cannot be marginal. It must have the present or future capacity to generate more than a minimal living for the investor, possibly within five years for a new business (8 CFR 214.2(e)(15)).

  Source: 8 CFR 214.2 (https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/214.2).

• The initial stay is up to 2 years. Extensions are granted in increments of up to 2 years, with no limit on the number of extensions.

  Source: USCIS: E-2 Treaty Investors (https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/e-2-treaty-investors).

• A spouse and unmarried children under 21 may accompany the investor. Spouses are employment authorized incident to status.

  Source: USCIS: E-2 Treaty Investors (https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/e-2-treaty-investors).

• How this page chooses brands

  A brand is listed when our research flags it as a possible E-2 fit and the Item 7 minimum is $250,000 or less. Earnings figures, when a franchisor provides them, belong in Item 19 of the FDD (16 CFR 436.9(c)).