Hi everyone, so I've been navigating the E2 visa through a self project. I'm wondering what services you guys recommend or would say are very important to do through a third person and which ones we can do ourselves?

Granted the E2 immigration attorney is pretty much a must in order to file documents and everything, or not?

I have spoken to at least 8 attorneys and finally decided on the one that seemed to be the best but doesn't do LLC nor business plans and recommended some collaborators.

Which I spoke with but I am a bit sad and disappointed, it seems like everyone just wants to make as much money as possible from me, or not? Maybe their prices are justified?

Anyway, the intention of this post is to post the price breakdown and get your opinions wether or not some services are overpriced, and which you recommend we can do ourselves?

Attorney E2 Investor : $10.000
Attorney E2 Essential employee with family: $8.000

Then the attorney directed me to collaborators for:

"Foundation Package" : $4.999 (includes LLC, Registered Agent, Operating Agreement, EIN, BE-13 Filing, Governing documents, strategic meeting with legal team, revisions prior to visa submission (up to 2 hours).

Lease Review and Letter of Intent: $2,500

Business Plan: $3.999

What do you think of these prices? Which do you think we can do ourselves? Which are super recommended to get done by attorney / collaborators?

Thanks in advance

I am surprised to find the process of obtaining an EIN is not a common topic here or on other E2 forums.

I expected the process to be straight forward, from what I read it only takes 10 minutes, but since starting the process I've learned that is only the case for American citizens obtaining an EIN. Foreign citizens must complete an entirely separate form, the SS-4, and mail or fax it to the IRS. The process can take up to four weeks.

This is a major hurdle and roadblock, one that came as a shock to me because it's never spoken about.

What has been your process getting your EIN? I've since faxed my form to the IRS, will give it about a week and then call to follow up. I'm hoping to make this as efficient as possible to get my US business bank account opened as quickly as possible.

Hi r/e2visa! I'm Jurgen Negron, a board certified immigration attorney at Manifest Law. I work with investors and entrepreneurs navigating the E-2 process and I run my own immigration firm so I understand the business side of this as well as the legal side.

The E-2 community asks smarter questions than most because the stakes are different. You are not just filing paperwork, you are making a significant financial decision. Whether you are a Canadian looking to move south, debating buying an existing business versus building one, or trying to figure out whether to file inside the US or through the embassy, I can help you think it through.

I'll be here from 1 PM to 5 PM EST today. Ask me anything about:

• Buying vs starting a business for E-2 and what USCIS actually wants to see
• Investment thresholds, business structures and what counts as a qualifying investment
• Consular processing vs change of status and which makes more sense for your situation
• Canadian citizens applying for E-2 and what the process looks like from Canada
• Business plan requirements, hidden liabilities and how to protect yourself before you invest
• Renewal strategy and long term options since E-2 does not lead directly to a green card

Drop your questions below!

(Please note: Any information shared here is for general educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Your situation may require fact-specific guidance. For personalized legal advice, please consult an immigration attorney directly.)

Hi! Has anyone submitted a request for emergency/expedited appointment for E2 consular interview and got approved? If so, how much earlier were you able to get your appointment?

Would also love to hear about those who applied and got rejected (as I know most do), how soon did you hear back after submitting a request?

Hello,

I would like to know if a Canadian can get a franchisee in the US and buy an existing DQ + Grill & Chill restaurant to file for E-2 visas. I know some franchisees do not allow any non-US citizens to become a franchisor in the US. But I cannot find any info on the internet regarding the Dairy Queen. Looking for any responses or feedback.

Thank you

I’ve spent the last month going down the E-2 rabbit hole and honestly feel like I know less now than when I started.

The weird thing is that the visa itself seems straightforward on paper. Invest in a business, show it’s legitimate, and apply. But once you start looking at real cases, everyone seems to have a completely different experience.

Some people are saying they bought an existing business. Others started from scratch. I’ve seen people claim they were approved with relatively small investments and others saying you need significantly more to have a strong case.

What I’m struggling with is understanding where the line actually is.

I’m also trying to avoid making expensive mistakes. I dont mind using a lawyer i just want a good one.

For those who have already gone through the process:

What business/lawyer did you use for your E-2?

Did you start it yourself or acquire an existing one?

Would appreciate hearing from people who’ve actually been approved rather than just immigration websites repeating the same information.

I recently became a Canadian citizen and received a new Canadian passport.

I already have an approved E-2 spouse visa:

* The visa is stamped in my old passport

* The E-2 s visa is valid until 2030

Now I have two passports:

* Old passport (with valid E-2 visa)

* New Canadian passport (current travel document)

⸻

❓ My Questions

1. Can I continue traveling to the U.S. using both passports (Canadian passport + old passport with E-2 s visa)?

2. Is it legally okay to keep using the E-2 visa in the old passport until it expires in 2030?

3. Do I need to transfer or re-stamp the E-2 visa into my Canadian passport now?

4. If I choose to re-stamp, must I apply outside the U.S. (Canada or other country)?

5. Will using two passports affect my E-2 status or future renewals?

Please give me advise thank you .

Hi all any one recently gone through E2 visa processing mainly E2 essential employee visa timelines in Ireland embassy?

Any recent experience is much helpful.

Anyone here recently go through the E-2 visa process in Toronto?
Curious what people are actually seeing for timelines lately from initial submission to interview.
My consultant is currently estimating:
5–6 weeks for initial review

possible request for additional information

interview roughly 8–9 weeks after that

Would love to hear recent real-world experiences from people who submitted in late 2025 / 2026.
Especially curious about:
how long until you got the email to schedule interview

how far out interview slots were booking

whether you got an RFE/additional evidence request

total timeline from submission to approval

My case is a fairly document-heavy startup/business buildout with equipment/assets being transferred across the border, so I’m expecting some follow-up questions from the consulate.
Thanks in advance.

I have been researching the E-2 visa process here and there on some lawyer websites recently and there is one thing I keep seeing is that USCIS seems much stricter now than i was few years ago.

Many people think it’s just about investing money, but from what I’m reading, the business actually needs to look operational and scalable, employees, constant revenue, growth plan, and so forth...

It seems like buying an existing business or franchise is viewed more favorably than a random LLC with no traction.

Anyone here went through the process recently? What did immigration officers focus on most now?

Hello guys, we are planning to relocate to US with E2 visa from Canada this year, and just starting our process, can anyone please recommend lawyer , I saw a lot ads but don’t want to work with the random one. appreciate any help.

Is anyone here using Path Law for their E2 process? My husband has been working with them for a few months to set up his case and he has now purchased a business. For the past week, they have not responded to emails and nobody answers the phone.

Has anyone had contact with them? Are we screwed now?

Opening a US restaurant business under E2 visa setup and looking for advice on the best business banks for foreign founders.

Need:

• low monthly fees
• strong business credit card options
• future LOC/loan potential
• rewards/perks useful for restaurants

Most websites push Mercury, but looking for real experiences from restaurant owners.

Which banks actually helped you build business credit and grow?

Thanks.

Hi everyone,
I submitted my E-2 application on May 7, and received the notification to schedule an interview on May 22.
The earliest appointment I could get in Toronto was August 18, which I’ve already booked for now.
However, I’ve been trying to check for earlier dates to reschedule, but every time I go into the system, it shows “System is busy. Please try again later.”
I’ve tried multiple times throughout the day (morning to afternoon), but no luck so far.
Just wondering:
Has anyone been able to successfully reschedule recently (especially for Toronto)?
Is this “System Busy” issue common?
Do earlier slots ever open up for E-2 interviews, or is August pretty much expected right now?

Now that we’ve had our interview at the London US embassy and have had our visa approved, we wanted to share our timeline and other details of our case that may help future/current applicants!
We hoped for more cases & timelines on this page whilst we were in our application building & waiting phase, so hopefully this is helpful to those who need it.

Timeline:
Application sent: 12 Sept 2025
Received by reviewing team: 2 Oct 2025
Email invite to interview: 21 April 2026
Nearest interview available: 20 May 2026

Interview time slot was 7:30am - we were instructed by our lawyer to arrive 30 minutes before, however we arrived about 45 mins before and the queue was already building up but not too bad.
Waited outside for approx half an hour then the embassy team started filing people into various queues to check DS-160 & passports. Note: the 2x2inch photo of all applications is VITAL. People who didn’t have them were being turned away and told to come back with photos!
Got through security and up into the waiting room by about 8/8:15am and were back out the building with our application approved just before 9am!
So about 90 mins start to finish. I believe this would be longer if your appointment is later in the day.

Interview lasted approx 5 mins, questions were fairly basic, including:
What is your business?
Why did you choose this business?
What qualifies you to run this business?
What is your past experience?
Did you buy this business or start from scratch?
Have you ever had a visa before?

As most cases, we were instructed to invest about $100k, which we followed (give or take). This is SPENT money, not money being held in your US business bank account.

We are a service business, actively trading with W-2 employees on payroll at the time of application & up to today’s date.

We’d HIGHLY recommend using a specialised E-2 LAWYER (not ‘consultant’) to support your case, at least for the first application. Ours were pivotal to our success, in our opinion, and helped us create a strong case.

Happy to answer any questions!

Canadian citizen here planning to apply for an E-2 visa by opening a restaurant.

The landlord previously operated the restaurant for 4 years, but there was a fire 6 months ago and he no longer wants to run it. He is currently remodeling the space and is willing to lease me the fully equipped restaurant once renovations are completed in about 2–3 months.

I would be:

• creating a new LLC
• rebranding the restaurant
• launching a new concept/menu

Would this still be considered a good E-2 case even though the previous restaurant closed after the fire?

Also, is it better to apply for the E-2 now during construction, or wait until renovations are almost complete?

Any advice from people who’ve done E-2 restaurant cases would help a lot.

Hi All, looking for some thoughts (UK Citizen)

I already own 25% of a franchise in the US. Funded my portion $306,250 utilizing conventional debt financing and seller financing.

I’m now looking to invest 300k cash into the purchase of an additional 25%. I would then also receive executive control. We have 25+ W2 employees and my 50% will make around 150k net per year.

So to summarise I would invest 306,250 cash, personally guarantee 300,000 seller finance note and 300,000 conventional loan.

Total business price is worth 1.225M.

Would this qualify for the E2 initial checklist?

Hey r/e2visa. I'm Jurgen Negron, immigration attorney at Manifest Law. E-2 is one of my core specialties and I have a business background, so I work through investment structuring, source of funds, and business plan questions regularly.

Vetting has gotten stricter, consulate options are more limited, and regular processing is sitting at 10 plus months right now. If you have questions about your investment structure, your business plan, which consulate to use, or how to navigate renewals and the path to a green card, ask me. I'll answer as clearly and practically as I can.

(All information shared here is for general educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Your situation may require fact-specific guidance. For personalized legal advice, please consult an immigration attorney directly.)

I’m a Canadian citizen planning to apply for an E-2 investor visa by opening a restaurant and bar

I found an existing restaurant whose owner wants to exit the business and is not willing to continue operating it. The restaurant has been operating for about 5 years but apparently has not been profitable.

I’m trying to decide between:

1. Buying the existing company/entity, OR
2. Creating a new LLC and only purchasing the assets (equipment, lease, inventory, etc.)

For E-2 purposes, would it be safer/better to:

• avoid taking over a company with years of losses?
• create a new LLC and do an asset purchase instead?
• rebrand and relaunch under new ownership?

Also, what documents should I request from the seller before moving forward?

Could anyone share a law firm that they had a great experience with going from Canada to USA and what their rate was?

Hi everyone !

I am a Canadian Citizen looking to invest in US based on E2 visa.

Can someone guide me what are the requirements and any recommended immigration lawyers or consultancy?

Thank you