Satisfying E2 Visa Requirements For Treaty Investor of Bedding Company

• Applicant: Mr. Chong
• Country/Region: Taiwan, China
• Industry: Anti-dust mite bedding and encasement
• Position: President and Chief Executive Officer/ Principal Investor
• Year Incorporated: 2015
• Number of Employees: 2 including Mr. Chong
• Number of Dependents: 2
• Investment Amount: Nearly $400,000
• Challenges:
  • No sales contracts
  • Company was a marketing agency
  • Prospective sales were low for the next few years

BACKGROUND

Mr. Chong came to Tsang and Associates hoping to apply for an E-2 visa as a treaty investor for his newly formed California based company, Corporation. As the principal investor and founder of Corporation, Mr. Chong felt it absolutely crucial that he facilitate the expansion of Corporation personally. Otherwise, the overall direction of his company may suffer and he would miss out on a lucrative chapter in his company’s history with its potentially vast expansion into the United States. As such, Mr. Chong asked us here at Tsang and Associates to assist in the application process. The E-2 visa application was filed on December 1, 2015 and Mr. Chong received his visa on December 15, 2015.

KEYS TO SUCCESS

In order for one to be successful in their E-2 visa application, there are several requirements that are necessary according to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services regulations:

• The treaty investor must possess the nationality of the treaty country
• The corporation must be a bona fide U.S. Corporation, a real operating enterprise and not a fictitious paper organization
• Capital invested must be substantial and irrevocably committed to the enterprise
• The investment cannot be marginal
• Investor must have ability to develop and direct the enterprise
• Investor must have intent to depart following the end of E-2 status

When Mr. Chong first came to us, we believed strongly that he would be able to have his E-2 visa approved. Mr. Chong was a Taiwanese national and thus fulfilled the first requirement, as Taiwan has been a treaty country since 1948. Furthermore, we proved through Corporation’s share certificates and share ledger that Mr. Chong was the owner of 100,000 shares of stock out of a possible 100,000 shares issued, indicating that Mr. Chong owned 100% of the company and thus satisfying the threshold for treaty country ownership.

While this first point was easy to prove, the remaining requirements were more difficult. In order to help tremendously, we created a business plan for Corporation; this business plan consisted of 5 year profit and loss projections, start-up costs, and organizational structures for the company. Using this business plan in addition to other pieces of evidence we demonstrated that Corporation was indeed a real and active operating enterprise; we proved this through photos of the office location, various purchase and sales invoices, and contracts with commercial suppliers, among much more, fully establishing the bona fide nature of Corporation.

Another issue we had to take care of was showing that Mr. Chong’s investment into Corporation was substantial and irrevocable. We showed that the company was established on August 12, 2015 and since then, after compiling checks, bank statements, and wire transfers, Mr. Chong had invested a total of more than $399,982 into the advancement of the Corporation. We highlighted the fact that these funds were from Mr. Chong’s personal funds in Taiwan and that this was substantial and irrevocable capital that had already been used in order to support Mr. Chong’s ability to continue to develop and direct the enterprise. Even though there is no clear definition for substantial, this is a key requirement set forth by USCIS for the purpose of ensuring that the investor is unquestionably committed to the success of the business. As a guideline, we adopted the foreign affairs regulated “proportionality test” which connected the cost of establishing the business with the percentage of actual investment by the investor. We proved that since Mr. Chong had invested 100% of the investment at $399,982 this was a substantial investment made from Mr. Chong’s personal funds.

Another key issue was ensuring that the investment made is not marginal, in that it would provide enough income to support the applicant and his family. We had to prove that either Mr. Chong’s income from the investment would be enough to provide for his family or that it would result in significant economic contributions such as creating jobs. This was challenging on the surface due to the Corporation’s new existence, existence of dependents, and the fact that only 2 employees were there including the investor. However, we were able to prove both qualifications. First, we hired a Certified Public Accountant to perform a careful analysis to assure a good return on investment then submitted bank statements indicating that the Corporation was in a solid financial position. In addition, utilizing the business plan that we helped create and also pointing to the organizational chart and projected employee hiring plan, we demonstrated that the Corporation would create at least 3 jobs in the next year and an additional 9 jobs by 2020, with likelihood of even more expansion and growth. Thus we proved that with its sound financial picture and continued growth, the investment made would not be marginal at all.

We also had to prove that Mr. Chong intended to develop and direct the Corporation. Per USCIS regulations, ordinary skilled and unskilled qualifications do not qualify. Thus to combat this, we first noted that Mr. Chong was indeed the principal investor who intended to serve as President and CEO of Corporation. We further detailed his intended duties and roles should his visa be approved. We showed that he would be critical in directing the business’s growth strategy and maintaining effective client relations in both Taiwan and in the United States. We established that Mr. Chong would be directing Corporation’s operations, sales and marketing strategies, and foreign relationships. We showed that as the principal investor in Corporation, he would serve as the company’s senior financial officer as well, incorporating his extensive background into helping Corporation maximize investments and productivity. We furthered Mr. Chong’s qualifications for these duties by detailing his education and extensive professional experience in the industry.

Lastly, we stressed that Mr. Chong did not have any intention to overstay his visa. We demonstrated that Mr. Chong still had significant family ties to Taiwan and that he and his family still possessed a multitude of properties and land as well as plenty of cash and assets at various financial institutions. Thus, we were able to prove that Mr. Chong would not exceed his visa duration.

OUTCOME

Our client’s E-2 treaty investor visa was approved on December 15, 2015. We further assisted both him and his wife in their visa interview preparations.