Do You Want to Start Up a Business in the United States?
A large number of U.S. companies are owned by immigrants. However, starting a venture as an immigrant can be a complex and confusing process. If you’re an international entrepreneur looking to establish a company in the U.S., you’ll need legal advice from a knowledgeable immigration attorney.
Immigrant-owned businesses have been established in every sector of the U.S. economy. Some immigrants start a business in the U.S. after they become citizens or permanent legal residents. Others obtain visas and begin planning a business before arriving in the United States.
If you want to start a new business in the United States, what’s the best path for you? What steps will you need to take? And when will you need the services and advice of a Seattle immigration lawyer?
What Visas Will Allow You to Start Up a Business?
Despite many efforts over the years to establish one, the U.S. does not provide a “business startup” visa. However, the following visas allow immigrants to start a new business in the United States:
- The O-1A visa is for persons with extraordinary abilities in education, business, the sciences, or athletics (talented aliens in the field of arts, motion pictures, or television go under the O-1B category). The O-1A visa is ideal for founding a business because you may extend an O-1A visa indefinitely.
- The EB-1 visa is available to those who can demonstrate that they have extraordinary ability in their field, are an outstanding professor or researcher, or are a certain level multinational executive or manager. Various kinds of documentation are required to obtain this visa.
- The EB-2 NIW is an employment-based second preference visa available to members of the professions who hold an advanced degree or its equivalent or who can demonstrate exceptional ability. It is an excellent green card option for those who want to open their own businesses: You do not need a job offer from an American employer but a detailed business plan describing your future work in the U.S.
- The H-1B visa may also be used to start your own business. Unlike the O-1A visa, you don’t need to prove extraordinary abilities. However, the H-1B does require a bachelor’s degree (or the equivalent) and specialized knowledge. Those on H-1B can register a business but can’t work for it! “If your spouse came to the U.S. on an H4 visa, they can take an active role in the business if you have an approved USCIS Form I-140 immigrant visa petition and obtain a work permit (EAD).” (https://stelmakhlaw.com/blog/opening-a-business-on-h1b/
- The L-1 visa, designed for intra-company transfers, may also be used to expand a foreign startup to the U.S. You’ll need to have a location, prove that you have sufficient revenue, and present a detailed business plan to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
What is the International Entrepreneur Rule?
The Department of Homeland Security, under the International Entrepreneur Rule (IER), may, on a case-by-case basis, approve a period of authorized stay for foreign entrepreneurs who show that their stays in the U.S. would provide a significant public benefit through their business ventures.
The period of authorized stay is called parole. Parole allows an immigrant who otherwise may be ineligible for admission into the U.S. to be paroled into the United States for a temporary period. An entrepreneur approved for parole may work only for the startup business.
The key elements and qualifications of the International Entrepreneur Rule are:
- The entrepreneur seeking parole may be living abroad or in the United States. The startup business must have been started in the U.S. within the past five years.
- To qualify an entrepreneur for parole, a startup must show the potential for growth by receiving substantial investments or substantial government awards or grants or by showing extensive alternative evidence of the startup’s potential for growth.
- The entrepreneur’s spouse may also apply for employment authorization after parole into the U.S. (Children do not qualify for employment authorization.)
- The entrepreneur may be approved for an initial parole period of thirty months. If granted re-parole based on additional growth, job creation, or revenue, the entrepreneur may be granted up to another thirty months under the IER for a total of five years.
- Up to three entrepreneurs per startup business may qualify for parole under the IER.
What Does the EB-5 Investor Visa Program Offer?
The U.S. has two primary investor visa programs: the EB-5 and E-2. The EB-5 program allows successful applicants and their families to apply for green cards. Applicants must invest in a U.S. business and create or preserve at least ten jobs resulting from that investment.
As of 2024, the minimum investment needed for an EB-5 visa is $1,050,000, although that amount can be lowered to $800,000 if the investment is made in a “targeted employment area” with high unemployment. Only 10,000 EB-5 applications are accepted annually.
Since 2022, the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act has allowed international investors to live and work in the United States while waiting for their EB-5 applications to be processed.
What Does the E-2 Visa Offer?
The E-2 visa program allows investors from specific treaty nations to invest in a startup or buy a U.S. business or franchise and reside legally in the United States. The initial visa term ranges from three months to five years, depending on the applicant’s nation of citizenship.
The E-2 visa may be renewed indefinitely, and a successful E-2 visa investor may obtain a green card. An E-2 investor must commit to investing a substantial amount (usually $100,000) and create (usually) at least two American jobs.
Someone with a passport from a treaty nation must have resided in that nation for at least three years before that person may apply for an E-2 visa. This rule thwarts any investor not from a treaty nation from becoming a citizen of a treaty nation merely to obtain an E-2 visa.
What Else Should an Immigrant Know About Starting Up a Business in the U.S.?
An immigrant who wants to start a new business in the United States must also comply with several legal requirements and regulations. You must secure funding, choose a business structure, register the business, develop a business plan, and more.
As your business grows, you may need to hire employees and become acquainted with U.S. employment laws. You should also apply for a credit card to establish credit in the U.S. and be advised – from the very beginning – by a business immigration lawyer.
Why Should You Choose Stelmakh & Associates?
Seattle immigration attorney Katya Stelmakh and her team at Stelmakh & Associates offer sound legal advice to their clients around the globe who plan to start up a new business or invest in a business in the U.S. We help you make the right choices, obtain the visa you need, and understand the requirements for your new business.
Stelmakh & Associates is the recipient of a 2024 Clients’ Choice Award from AVVO, the national attorney rating service, and in 2022, we were named the Best Immigration Lawyers in Seattle by Expertise.com.
We provide remedies to the challenges foreign entrepreneurs face. If you are seeking an investor or entrepreneur visa, or if you’re an immigrant facing challenges related to starting up a business in the U.S., call Stelmakh & Associates now, from anywhere in the world, at 206-558-6288.
