IN THIS GUIDE · Treat the enterprise, the investor, and the funds as three separate questions
Confirm nationality and who actually controls the decisions
Identify the applicant’s treaty nationality and trace the enterprise’s ownership: at least 50% must be owned by nationals of the relevant treaty country. Canadian permanent residence does not establish Canadian nationality. Read voting, management and lender rights to show how the investor will develop and direct the business, rather than treating a share percentage as the complete control analysis. The applicant must also intend to depart when E status ends.
Trace the source and the path of the funds
Hypothetical example: a Windsor-area applicant plans to fund an enterprise partly with an unsecured personal loan from a sibling and partly with a business line of credit secured against the target company's own equipment. Review each source separately — personal unsecured borrowing and borrowing secured against the enterprise's own assets are treated differently, and the security documents themselves need to be read, not just the word 'loan' on a term sheet.
Read escrow and business-cost terms together, not separately
The FAM recognizes qualifying investment-in-process and escrow arrangements, including certain visa-contingent purchases. Identify the release, refund, and cancellation conditions before any payment is made. Substantiality is judged relative to the actual cost of the business — there is no fixed universal E-2 minimum that replaces that analysis — so distinguish money still being discussed from money committed under signed terms and from money already spent.
Demonstrate a real enterprise beyond the applicant's own household
Show a real operating enterprise with supported accounts and projections. Nonmarginality requires present or future capacity to provide more than a minimal living for the investor and family, or the applicable significant economic contribution; projected future capacity generally should be realizable within five years of normal business activity. E-2 does not impose an EB-5 ten-job quota. Keep historical results distinct from forecasts after acquisition. Canadian citizens generally require an E visa for this route, so use the applicable consular instructions rather than assuming another category’s visa exemption applies.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.