E2 / E1 Essential Employee Visas

E2 / E1 Employee Visa Attorney

An American company which qualifies as a Treaty Investor (E-2)  or  Treaty Trader (E-1) can  bring a national of a treaty country as an essential skilled worker (essential employee) or as an executive or  supervisor/manager position. In either case, the employer must qualify as either an investor or  trader.

The Treaty Trader (E-1) or Treaty Investor (E-2) visa is for a national of a country with which  the United States (U.S.) maintains a treaty of commerce and navigation. For a list of treaty countries, please visit the  Department of State website.

The E-2 visa is granted to a foreign national who invests in the creation or purchase of an  existing business in the United States, whereas the E-1 visa allows a foreign national to trade goods or services between his/her country of citizenship and the United States from the American soil.

To learn more about those visas, please refer to our specific page: investor visas

As an E-1 or E-2 employee, one can come as:

• An executive or supervisory employee; or
• An essential employee with specialized skills

Also the:

• Employee must be a national of the same country as the employer;
• Employer, is not resident abroad, must maintain E status in the United States.

Executive And Supervisory Employee

In evaluating the executive or supervisory aspect of the future position of the essential employee, the adjudicating  officer will mainly look at the title, job description with detailed duties, its place within the  company’s organizational structure, the number and skill levels of the employees the essential employee will supervise, the salary offered, and prior experience of the applicant at an executive or supervisory level. Further, the officer will examine the true nature of the  position, whether it is primarily an executive or supervisory position or incidental function.

Essential Employee

The essential employee applicant must prove that he or she possesses specialized skills and that his or her skills  are needed and essential to the efficient operation of the U.S. company. Several factors such  as: the degree of expertise and experience in the specialized field; the uniqueness of these kills; the future job duties; and salary expected for the position to be filled are taken into account.

The duration of the essentiality may vary from business to business and the applicant will have to prove that a U.S. worker cannot be trained for this particular position within the  requested visa period.

Our law firm has wide experience in the submission of E-2 employee applications with various consulates, as well as E-1 employee applications. Vazquez & Poudat, PLLC can assist you with the filing of your application from anywhere, no matter where you will be employed.