Visa Options for Foreign Investors and Entrepreneurs
Many U.S. startups are co-founded by foreign nationals, and for those that are not, all start-ups need capital. Fortunately, it is not necessary to limit the potential investor pool exclusively to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. A large number of U.S. startups are either co-founded or funded by foreign investors, and the U.S. government understands that in order to attract foreign investment into the U.S. economy there must be designated visa categories available to those investors. These specific visa categories were established to allow investors and co-founders to travel to the U.S. to manage and oversee their investment. While a wide variety of visas may be applicable to any situation, the two most common visa categories utilized by foreign investors and entrepreneurs are the E-2 and the L-1A “new office” visa.