Visas in Connection with Business Expansions

Transcription

1 Visas in Connection with Business Expansions

2 A citizen of a foreign country who seeks to enter the United States (U.S.) generally must first obtain a U.S. visa, which is placed in the traveler s passport. Certain international travelers may be eligible to travel to the U.S. without a visa if they meet the requirements for visa-free travel.

3 Canadian citizens are exempt from U.S. visa requirements for most purposes of nonimmigrant travel to the United States. Canadians may apply for most entry into the United States as visitors, temporary workers, or students directly at a U.S. port of entry or preclearance station.

4 The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables nationals of 36 participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business (visitor [B] visa purposes only) for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. The program was established to eliminate unnecessary barriers to travel. VWP eligible travelers may apply for a visa, if they prefer to do so. Nationals of VWP countries must meet eligibility requirements to travel without a visa on VWP, and therefore, some travelers from VWP countries are not eligible to use the program. VWP travelers are required to have a valid authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to travel, are screened at the port of entry into the United States, and are enrolled in the Department of Homeland Security s US-VISIT program.

5 Currently, 36 countries participate in the Visa Waiver Program. The current list of countries is shown below: Andorra Hungary New Zealand Australia Iceland Norway Austria Ireland Portugal Belgium Italy San Marino Brunei Japan Singapore Czech Republic Latvia Slovakia Denmark Liechtenstein Slovenia Estonia Lithuania South Korea Finland Luxembourg Spain France Malta Sweden Germany Monaco Switzerland Greece the Netherlands United Kingdom

6 There are more than 30 different types of U.S. nonimmigrant visas for everything from students, cultural exchanges, temporary employment, visits for tourism or business, starting a business, and more. The Department of State s website at Travel.State.gov provides a wealth of information about all of these visas and what is required to qualify for them.

7 There are a few visa categories that are used by businesses most often to send employees to U.S.-based operations or to start new operations there. Those categories are: B-1 Business Visitors E-1/E-2 Treaty Trader/Treaty Investor H L Specialty occupations in fields requiring highly specialized knowledge Intra-company Transferees

8 The chart below provides an overview of temporary businessrelated travel permitted on business visitor visas. Purpose of Your Travel About Your Temporary Visit Business venture, investor seeking investment Conference, meeting, trade show or business event attendee Exposition or trade show employees of foreign exhibitors at international fairs (excludes government representatives) Lecturer or speaker Survey potential sites for a business and/or to lease premises in US. Cannot remain in US to manage business. Will receive no salary or income from a U.S based company/entity. For scientific, educational, professional or business purposes. Will receive no salary or income from a U.S based company/entity. Will plan, assemble, dismantle, maintain, or be employed in connection with exhibits at international fairs or expositions. No salary or income from a U.S. based company/entity, other than expenses incidental to the visit.

9 The chart below is an overview of key groupings of temporary business related travel permitted on business visitor visas. Purpose of Your Travel About Your Temporary Visit Researcher Sales/selling Service engineer (Commercial, Industrial) Training Independent research, no salary/income from a US based source, or benefit to US institution. Exhibition/taking orders/negotiating and signing contracts for products, which must be produced outside the U.S. Engineer(s) install, service or repair commercial or industrial equipment or machinery sold by a non-us company to a U.S. buyer, when specifically required by the purchase contract. Installation cannot include construction work, except for supervision or training of US workers to perform construction. Participating in a training program that is not designed primarily to provide employment. Will receive no payment or income from a U.S. based company/entity, other than an expense allowance or expense reimbursement related to traveler s stay.

10 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 who is coming to the U.S. to carry on substantial trade, including trade in services or technology, principally between the U.S. and the treaty country, or to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which the national has invested, or is in the process of investing a substantial amount of capital, under the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

11 Treaty trader applicants must meet specific requirements to qualify for a treaty trader (E-1) visa under immigration law. The consular officer will determine whether a treaty trader applicant qualifies for a visa. The applicant must be a national of a treaty country. The trading firm for which the applicant is coming to the U. S. must have the nationality of the treaty country. The international trade must be "substantial" in the sense that there is a sizable and continuing volume of trade. The trade must be principally between the U.S. and the treaty country, which is defined to mean that more than 50 percent of the international trade involved must be between the U.S. and the country of the applicant's nationality. Trade means the international exchange of goods, services, and technology. Title of the trade items must pass from one party to the other. The applicant must be employed in a supervisory or executive capacity, or possess highly specialized skills essential to the efficient operation of the firm. Ordinary skilled or unskilled workers do not qualify.

12 Treaty investor applicants must meet specific requirements to qualify for a treaty investor (E-2) visa under immigration law. The consular officer will determine whether a treaty investor applicant qualifies for a visa. The investor, either a real or corporate person, must be a national of a treaty country. The investment must be substantial and sufficient to ensure the successful operation of the enterprise. The investment must be a real operating enterprise. Speculative or idle investment does not qualify. The investment may not be marginal. It must generate significantly more income than just to provide a living to the investor and family, or it must have a significant economic impact in the U.S. The investor must have control of the funds, and the investment must be at risk in the commercial sense. The investor must be coming to the U.S. to develop and direct the enterprise. If the applicant is not the principal investor, he or she must be employed in a supervisory, executive, or highly specialized skill capacity. Ordinary skilled and unskilled workers do not qualify.

13 There are several different types of H-visa sub-categories, but the most common type of H-visa used by businesses to bring workers to the U.S. is the H-1B. The H-1B is for persons in a specialty occupation which requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge requiring completion of a specific course of higher education. This category requires a labor certification from the U.S. Department of Labor and petition approval by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. The category is numerically capped by law at 65,000 cases per year.

14 The L nonimmigrant classification enables a U.S. employer to transfer an executive or manager or a professional employee with specialized knowledge relating to the organization s interests from one of its affiliated foreign offices to one of its offices in the United States. This classification also enables a foreign company which does not yet have an affiliated U.S. office to send an executive or manager to the United States with the purpose of establishing one. The employer must file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, on behalf of the employee.

15 The U.S. Embassy and its Consulates all handle visa applications on an appointment basis only. The visa process is summarized below: Prepare all requisite documents and materials for the visa classification needed. Complete and submit the DS-160 online visa application form. Pay the required visa fees and schedule your visa appointment at You may be required to send supporting documentation to the Embassy or Consulate prior to your interview. Appear at your interview at the appointed date and time. Please bring with you a recent visa-sized photograph and any supporting documentation necessary.

16 Prior to the applicant s interview with the consular officer, staff will intake any necessary documents and digital scans will be taken of the applicant s fingerprints. All nonimmigrant visa applicants are interviewed by a U.S. consular officer. During the interview, the consular officer will ask questions of the applicant related to the visa category for which the individual has applied. Applicants should have any necessary supporting documents with them to provide to the officer, if requested. Interviews generally take only a few minutes and applicants are informed whether or not the visa has been recommended for approval.

17 It generally takes a day or two after the visa interview for the approved visas to be printed and placed in the applicant s passport. After the visa is printed it is turned over to DHL/Loomis for delivery to the location selected by the applicant when they scheduled their appointment. When the passport is received at the delivery location an is sent to the applicant advising that they can either pick up the passport or make arrangements for home delivery for an additional fee.

18 The U.S. Embassy website at provides visa information and links to the Consulates in Mission Canada. The Department of State s travel website at provides a wealth of information about U.S. visas and other travel issues. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service s website at provides information about petition-based visa categories. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection website at details U.S. entry requirements and provides helpful suggestions for an efficient and problem-free entry.

19 Scott Feeken Nonimmigrant Visa Chief U.S. Consulate General, Toronto