US Business Immigration Lawyer
In this era of multi-national corporations, cross-border transactions, and cultural
and athletic exchanges, immigration law favors those with vision who trade with
and invest in the United States. Messing Law Offices has gained extensive depth
and experience as a team player in the many-faceted process of helping businesses and individual investors with
the complex rules and requirements of international
business law, civil law, structuring transactions, tax consequences and visa issuances.
Our clients are international and we provide them with immigration attorney guidance and expertise to obtain their business-based visas in the context of the broader
business needs and constraints.
Tucson,
Arizona Immigration Lawyer.
Because of the variety and creativity that can be applied to business visa needs,
it is important to determine the purpose of the visa and the length of time for
which it is needed. For example, a rather easily obtained visa is the business visitor
or B-1 visa, which ordinarily does not require the services of an immigration attorney
like Messing Law Offices. The B-1 visa is suitable for shorter trips and
for limited purposes such as to investigate
certain types business opportunities.
The visa often can be obtained at the border. Usually however the visa is for a
very limited period, not to exceed six months, and can be renewed, but usually only
once. The visa has a number of restrictions on what can be done while a business
visitor to the United States, and is definitely not suited to job hunting.
Other visa categories generally require more more thoughtful consideration, and
the services of an experienced and knowledgeable immigration lawyer such as Messing
Law Offices.
Trade and Investment Visas
The E category visas are useful examples of how business visa law works. A treaty
trader or investor from one of the
many foreign countries with which the U.S.
has signed trade or investor treaties may apply for a non-immigrant visa to conduct
trade or make an investment. Please consult
the list of US treaty trader and investment partners to determine if a particular country
qualifies.
Qualified foreign nationals who have a substantial investment or who are in the process of
investing a substantial amount of money in the U.S. are eligible
to apply as treaty investors (E-2). Investors may also apply to bring a spouse and dependent minor children, though working by a spouse requires
additional immigration approvals.
While E-2 visas allow a holder to renew periodically, usually in 5 year increments
if the business continues to qualify, they
do not lead to permanent residency. If permanent residency is a consideration, it
is possible to seek an immigrant investor visa (EB-5) at the outset, or under certain circumstances
to convert an E-2 visa to an EB-5 immigrant visa, but such a step requires an understanding
of the business and tax consequences. Permanent residents cannot live outside the
United States for long periods, and should pay taxes in the U.S. in order to avoid
a risk of losing the permanent residency through abandonment, but these restrictions
are not always suitable for all classes of foreign investors or traders, in which
case an E-2 visa may be preferable for practical and business reasons, even though
permanent residency and naturalization are thereby precluded.
Messing Law Offices provides quality professional guidance, advice, and comprehensive strategy at reasonable rates to enable a fully informed decision.
Inter-company transfers
Qualifying existing business that already operate abroad can transfer appropriately
high level employees who have worked for one year out of the past three to the United
States in order to start U.S. operations or to staff existing ones. The visa category
is L-1.
The L-1A visa category is principally for executives and managers. The L-1B visa
includes certain specialized workers. Both types of L-1 visas allow a holder to
apply for a green card while working in the United States on the visa, which itself
is a considerable advantage not shared with most other visas, but the L-1A visa
holder has the additional important advantage of not having also to apply for a
labor certification, which can be a significant savings in terms of time and expense.
Business visa planning considerations
Although the L-1 visa seems very different from the investor visa, in fact the two
can be viewed as alternative solutions in an appropriate circumstance where a foreign
business from a country with a treaty of trade and/or investment wants to open a
US operation and (by way of example only) the chief executive officer has been working
with the company for over one year of the past three. In this example, it could
be possible for the CEO to apply for an L-1A and be on a fast track for a green
card, or alternatively, assuming the company qualified, the CEO could apply for
an E-2 or EB-5 visa, depending on the strategic business, investment, and personal benefits that
were being sought.
This type of analysis requires the assistance of a sophisticated business visa lawyer
such as Messing Law Offices.
Call
Messing Law Offices if you need help with a business visa problem or concern.
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