When applying for an E-2 visa, one common question is whether attorney fees can be counted as part of the required investment amount. The answer is yes, but with some important considerations. Here’s a breakdown of how attorney fees factor into your E-2 visa investment and why they shouldn’t make up the bulk of your expenses.
Including Attorney Fees in Your Investment
You can include attorney fees as part of your investment amount when applying for an E-2 visa. By “attorney fees,” we are referring to those fees that are paid to lawyers who assist with the creation of the business (such as establishing the LLC or corporation or drafting the operating agreement), or who prepare the visa application. This is a legitimate expense, and at Scott Legal, we typically include these fees when calculating the total investment. After all, legal support is a necessary part of establishing and operating your business in compliance with U.S. laws.
Why Attorney Fees Aren’t the Best E-2 Visa Expenditure
While it’s possible to include attorney fees, they should not be the primary or largest portion of your investment. When examining your E-2 application, immigration officers want to see that your funds are being actively used to get the business up and running. Expenses such as equipment purchases, rent, employee salaries, inventory, and marketing are generally considered to be strong expenses since they demonstrate that your investment is directly committed to making the business operational and profitable. Attorney fees, on the other hand, are often seen as a relatively weaker expense category, since these fees are arguably not directly related to the business becoming operational and profitable.
This is especially important if you’re filing with USCIS, as they tend to give less weight to attorney fees in comparison to expenses that contribute directly to business operations. If your total investment amount is relatively low, having a significant portion allocated to attorney fees can raise red flags.
What the Examiner Is Looking For
For an E-2 visa application, immigration examiners are primarily interested in expenses that demonstrate a real and active business. While attorney fees are necessary, they don’t contribute to the actual operations of the business in the same way that rent, equipment purchases, or hiring employees do.
For example, if your investment amount is $100,000 and $20,000 of that is spent on attorney fees, but the remaining $80,000 is clearly allocated to operational costs, your application is in a better position than if your investment amount is $50,000 and $20,000 was paid toward attorney fees.
Conclusion
Attorney fees can be included in your E-2 visa investment amount, but they should not constitute a large portion of your total expenses. To strengthen your E-2 visa application, focus on committing the large majority of the investment amount toward expenditures that are more directly related to making the business operational and profitable, such as equipment purchases, rent, employee salaries, inventory, and marketing.
If you need help structuring your E-2 visa investment or want guidance on maximizing your chances of approval, schedule a consultation with us today.
