Planning an E1/E2 Trader/Investor Visa or an O1 Extraordinary Ability Visa
After 18 months of the Covid-19 travel ban, the United States will finally reopen its borders to fully vaccinated travelers from Europe starting in November. Therefore, this is the best time to start working on preparing E1/E2 trader/investor visa and O1 extraordinary ability visa packages. These are very complex applications comprised of several forms, cover and recommendation letters, and supporting documents.
At Cea Legal, we encourage our clients to start working with us to gather the requested documents well in advance of the intended date of travel and/or the start of a business project or employment.
With respect to E1/E2 Investor Visa Applications, the most important items to collect are:
Evidence of either the substantial investment (E2) into a newly formed or existing U.S. company or the substantial trade (E1) between the country of nationality of the applicant and the U.S.;
Corporate ownership of the U.S. entity showing that at least 50% is owned by citizens of the country of nationality of the applicant;
Expenses incurred in connection with the U.S. operations originated by the investment or the trade;
Commercial lease for the premises that will headquarter the U.S. business;
Certificates and reference letters to show the qualifications of the applicant as a proposed manager, executive, or essential employee;
Employment agreements for the U.S. employees hired to start up the operations in the United States even before the principal applicant's E1/E2 visa application.
At Cea Legal, our expertise and versatility in corporate, real estate, and business immigration places us in a unique position to understand our clients' needs and leave no stones unturned. With respect to O1 Extraordinary Ability Visa Applications, the most important items to collect are:
Articles of the proposed beneficiary in major publications (whether print or online versions) specifically discussing the accomplishments of the beneficiary in the field of extraordinary ability. This is by far the requirement that we scrutinize most carefully. If we do not see some good press coverage, we do not take the case. One of the most common misconceptions is to believe that any article could serve this purpose. For instance, if the applicant is a chef, a long article outlining what the chef does in their free time will be useless. In contrast, a small piece evidencing how the chef contributed to the obtainment of an award for the restaurant the chef consulted for will strengthen the application significantly.
Recommendation letters from experts in the field having first-hand knowledge of the extraordinary ability of the applicant.
Awards, acknowledgments, certifications from government agencies or private companies.
Letter of intent from U.S. future employers to create a 3-year itinerary of engagements to show to the USCIS. This is a very important requirement to avoid USCIS characterizing the application as a “self-petition.” However, the beauty of the O1 visa is that it is the only one that allows the visa holder to add new projects throughout its validity.
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