Business Visitor (B-1 Visa)

The B-1 visa is designed to allow an individual to enter the United States temporarily to carry on limited activities for the benefit of a foreign employer. The business activity must be associated with international trade or commerce.

The B-1 visa classification is often used by sales personnel to enter the United States, to solicit sales for foreign-made products. The B-1 visa is also often used by executives or managers of foreign companies to enter the United States to do certain preliminary work necessary to start up a business in the United States.

Intra-company Transferee (L-1 Visa)

The L-1 visa is available to an individual who has been employed by a foreign company for at least one year during the preceding three-year period outside the United States, as an executive, manager, or person with specialized knowledge, and who seeks to enter the United States affiliate of the foreign company in one of these capacities.

To qualify as an executive or manager, the employee’s duties must primarily involve supervising, managing or directing the work either employees or a key department or function of the company’s business. A specialized-knowledge employee is one who either has special knowledge of a product and its application in international markets or has an advanced level of knowledge of the company’s processes and procedure.

To be eligible for this classification, the foreign and U.S. operations must have a "qualifying relationship." This relationship must be carefully examined to ensure that it satisfies the affiliation rules for immigration purposes.

Professional (H-1B or TN Visa)

The H-1B visa can be utilized to bring individuals to the United States for a temporary period of up to six years to work in a "specialty occupation," (i.e. an occupation that involves the application of highly-specialized knowledge and requires the attainment of a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent in the specific specialty.) This visa category is generally available to individuals engaged in a profession.

The H-1B category has an annual quota and is be subject to a "labor attestation" requirement. The U.S. employer must attest to the U.S. Department of Labor that certain conditions of employment have been satisfied before hiring a foreign worker for a temporary period in the H-1B visa category.

The North American Free Trade Agreement allows certain Canadian and Mexican professionals to enter the United States pursuant to a TN visa to work for a U.S. employer. To be eligible in this category, the alien must demonstrate that he or she is a member of one of the professions listed in the appendix of the Free Trade Agreement.

Treaty Trader and Treaty Investor (E-1 or E-2 Visa)

Nationals of certain countries having treaties with the U.S. are eligible to apply for entry into the United States as treaty traders or treaty investor in the E visa category. The treaty trader (E-1) visa is designed to facilitate U.S. entry for the sole purpose of carrying on substantial trade between the United States and the treaty country. The treaty investor (E-2) visa is designed for companies or individuals who invest substantial funds in a U.S. business.

Both E-1 and E-2 visas require that the I.S. business have the "nationality" of the foreign country, meaning that at least 50% of the business must be owned by nationals of the country. Each individual seeking to enter the U.S. must also be a citizen of the treaty country.

For E-2 visas, an applicant must show that he or she has made a "substantial investment" that qualifies for treaty investor status. There is no minimum dollar amount used to determine whether an investment is substantial. The amount of funds invested will be compared to the value of cost of the U.S. business to determine whether the investment is substantial. The investment is measured by the amount that the investor has "at risk" in the U.S. business. Indebtedness such as mortgage debt or commercial loans secured by assets of the U.S. business does not count toward measuring the amount of the investment.

It is also important to show that the business will have a positive economic impact and generate or maintain jobs for U.S. workers. The investor must be coming to the United States to develop and control the operation and must have a controlling interest in the operation. Controlling interest is defined as a degree of ownership or management.

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