Skip to content E-class visas for entry into the United States are divided into E-1 visas and E-2 visas. They are for citizens of countries with which the United States maintains a treaty of friendship, commerce and navigation and who wish to travel to the United States for trade or investment.
Key features of E visas
E visas are so-called “non-immigrant” visas. They are temporary visas for people who wish to travel to the United States for limited periods of time. Authorities established these visas to facilitate and enhance economic interaction between the United States and other countries. They are not a tool for foreign nationals to retire or simply settle in the United States.
Consulates normally issue E visas for a maximum duration of five years (renewable). However, the decision on actual validity is always up to the consular officer.
The main visa application requirement is that at least 50% of the US company is owned by Italian citizens.
E-1 visas
E-1 visas are trade visas for nationals of certain countries who want to go to the United States to engage in significant trade, primarily between the United States and the treaty country.
U.S. law (§101(a)(15)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act) expressly provides that E-1 visa holders may enter the U.S. “solely for the purpose of engaging in substantial trade.”
Considerable trade refers to a continuous flow of commercial items between the United States and the signatory country of the treaty.
E-2 visas
E-2 visas are investor visas for citizens who want to travel to the United States to develop and direct the operations of a business in which the applicant has invested or is in the process of investing a significant amount of capital.
There is no fixed amount for the investment. The funds invested must be sufficient to guarantee the investor’s financial commitment to the smooth running of the business. This is established by the “proportionality test”. The criterion on which the test is based is to compare the total invested in the company with the cost necessary to establish a new business of the same nature or the amount of capital needed to acquire an existing company.
Release procedure
The procedure for issuing an E visa involves several steps. So, it can take a few months to obtain the visa from the moment the procedure starts.
The U.S. Embassy in Rome is the only consular section in Italy competent to evaluate applications for E visas. Applicants must address their visa requests to Rome and attend a consular interview. The Embassy interview is mandatory both in the case of first applications and renewals.
The first step is to fill out the DS-160 form. After that, the applicant must create a consular account and pay the consular fee. Applicants must then send the visa application electronically to the Embassy in Rome. They must attach all the documentation required depending on the visa type. Examples of these documents are the applicant’s passport and resume, the form DS-160 confirmation, the US company’s certificate of incorporation and the organizational chart.
After receiving the visa application, the Embassy sends a confirmation of receipt. Finally, after reviewing the file, the visa office sends an e-mail to schedule the consular interview. This is for better understanding the applicant’s reasons and the activities he will carried out in the United States.
Timing
After the consular interview, the authorities return the passport with the visa sticker to the applicant via DHL (if they opt for the premium return procedure). Alternatively, they send it to a storage center and the applicant must go and collect it in person.
It is also important to make a distinction between vetted and non-vetted companies. A vetted company is a verified Italian company for the sponsorship of E visas as it has already received the approval of a certain number of E1 and/or E-2 visas. As a result, the company must submit less documentation and the approval process is much faster – usually a couple of days.
On the contrary, a non-vetted company will have to submit many more documents to the Embassy. This is because the consular section considers it as “unknown” and therefore requires more checks. Approval of an E visa for a non-vetted company takes about four weeks.
E visas for spouses and children
The spouse and children under the age of 21 of an E visa holder can also apply for the same visa category. They will release an E-1 dependant or E-2 dependant visa which will also have a maximum duration of five years and will expire on the same day as the visa of the main applicant.
Dependants can also apply for the visa after the main applicant has obtained his/her visa. In this case, the visa will expire on the same day as that of the spouse/parent.