The United States can be a natural market for Brazilian entrepreneurs seeking scale, access to capital, suppliers, and new customers. However, for those planning to relocate to launch, acquire, or operate a business in the U.S., immigration strategy must go hand in hand with business strategy. When available, the E-2 Treaty Investor Visa can be one of the most practical pathways.
In simple terms, the E-2 Visa allows a national of a treaty country to enter the United States to develop and direct a business in which they have invested—or are actively investing—a substantial amount of capital. It is not a green card, but rather a practical option for founders, operators, franchise buyers, and business owners who want to actively manage a U.S. operation.
The First Step: Confirm Eligibility Through Nationality
For Brazilian nationals, the first consideration is nationality. Brazil is not an E-2 treaty country, meaning that a Brazilian passport alone is generally not sufficient. However, many Brazilians hold dual citizenship with treaty countries such as Italy, Portugal, Paraguay, or Argentina. In these cases, an E-2 strategy may be viable, provided the rest of the structure is properly established.
Dual citizenship must be clearly documented. Having ancestry, living abroad, or having a citizenship application in progress is not enough. The applicant must already be a national of a treaty country and hold a valid passport, along with any supporting civil documents when required. For Portuguese nationals, eligibility for the E-1 and E-2 visa categories was introduced relatively recently and became available to qualified applicants beginning on April 23, 2024.
Next: Structure the Business Correctly
Once nationality has been established, attention turns to the ownership structure. The U.S. company must also possess the nationality of the treaty country. In practice, at least 50% of the business must be owned by nationals of that treaty country. This requires careful planning from the outset, particularly when there are co-founders, investors, or future fundraising rounds.
Ownership dilution should be addressed before raising capital—not afterward. A founder who initially owns 80% or 90% of the company may appear well positioned for an E-2 Visa, but an investment round that reduces ownership below 50% could significantly complicate eligibility. Shareholder agreements, voting rights, board control, veto rights, and governance provisions should all be designed with the immigration strategy in mind.
Additional care is required when founders hold passports from different treaty countries. The company’s nationality, the principal applicant, and any future E-2 employee strategy should all be evaluated together before equity is issued.
What the Consulate Wants to See
Once nationality and ownership have been addressed, the focus shifts to the business itself. The consular officer will evaluate whether the investment is credible, whether the business is real, whether it has the potential to create jobs, and whether there is a realistic likelihood of success. Simply transferring money to the United States is not enough. The investment must be substantial, irrevocably committed, placed at risk, and tied to a legitimate commercial enterprise.
The investment amount should tell a business story—not simply represent a number. An investment of $100,000 may be substantial for a service-based business but insufficient for manufacturing, hospitality, logistics, or retail operations. The objective is to demonstrate that the investment is proportional to the business plan, has already been committed, and will fund tangible business needs such as equipment, inventory, lease payments, licenses, payroll, technology, marketing, or the acquisition of an existing business.
Job creation also plays an important role. Unlike the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, the E-2 Visa does not require a fixed number of jobs. However, the business cannot exist solely to support the investor and their family. Hiring plans, payroll records, job descriptions, organizational charts, and evidence of current employees help demonstrate that the enterprise is more than a marginal business.
The third pillar is commercial viability. A strong case presents a genuine, operating business supported by customer contracts, letters of intent, purchase orders, invoices, bank statements, lease agreements, supplier relationships, evidence of market demand, a well-developed business plan, and financial projections grounded in reality. The more operational traction the business can demonstrate, the stronger the application tends to be.
For this reason, early-stage startups require additional preparation. A pre-revenue company may still qualify, but it has more to prove. Before the visa interview, founders should ideally have already formed the U.S. company, opened a business bank account, validated customers and business partners, secured operating premises when necessary, established supplier relationships, and documented a realistic hiring plan.
Startups Require Additional Preparation
All preparatory business activities must comply with the founder’s immigration status. Permissible temporary business activities may include attending meetings, negotiating contracts, participating in conferences, and conducting market research. However, founders should not actively work in the United States or directly manage the business before obtaining the appropriate work authorization.
Another Option: Acquiring an Existing Business
For some investors, purchasing an existing business may present a stronger E-2 strategy than launching a new venture from scratch. An acquisition may provide immediate access to customers, revenue, employees, contracts, equipment, licenses, operating history, and market reputation—all of which help demonstrate from day one that the enterprise is legitimate.
This evidentiary advantage is significant. Established businesses typically have tax returns, financial statements, payroll records, W-2s, 1099s, profit and loss statements, and other documentation demonstrating ongoing operations. Rather than relying solely on projections, investors can present historical performance while explaining how their management will expand the business.
An acquisition also strengthens the employment narrative. If the business already has employees, the investor can demonstrate both job preservation and future hiring plans. This can be particularly advantageous for restaurants, franchises, distribution companies, medical practices, service businesses, manufacturing companies, and other operations with an existing workforce.
Managing the Closing Process
The primary challenge in acquisition cases is timing. Sellers want certainty, while buyers may be reluctant to release the full purchase price before visa approval. In these situations, an escrow arrangement can be an effective solution, allowing funds to remain committed while being released once the E-2 condition has been satisfied.
The escrow agreement must be carefully structured. Generally, the relevant condition should be E-2 approval to avoid making the investment appear overly contingent. The purchase agreement, escrow agreement, source of funds documentation, closing conditions, and visa application should all present a consistent narrative.
The purchase agreement itself should also support the immigration strategy. It should address what happens if the E-2 Visa is denied, how long the seller will wait before terminating the transaction, which documents will be provided for the visa application, whether employees will remain after closing, and how operational transition will occur. Due diligence should extend well beyond the purchase price to include revenue, employees, leases, licenses, franchise agreements, liabilities, litigation, customer concentration, tax issues, and the business’s ability to support the overall E-2 narrative.
What If the Goal Is to Expand an Existing Brazilian Business?
When the strategy involves expanding an existing Brazilian company into the United States, the E-2 application should clearly demonstrate that the U.S. operation represents a genuine expansion rather than a shell company. The application should explain the company’s history in Brazil, the U.S. market opportunity, the relationship between the Brazilian and U.S. operations, the planned U.S. investment, the founder’s role, and projected revenue and hiring. Existing customers, channel partners, and tangible business progress should all be prominently documented.
Conclusion: Plan Before You Apply
The strongest E-2 cases are built well before the application is submitted. With proper planning, founders can structure the company correctly, preserve treaty-country nationality, avoid ownership dilution issues, document the lawful source of investment funds, validate U.S. customers, prepare a realistic hiring plan, and determine whether a startup, franchise, or acquisition best supports their long-term objectives.
The E-2 Visa can be an exceptionally powerful option for Brazilian entrepreneurs who hold citizenship in an eligible treaty country such as Italy, Portugal, Paraguay, or Argentina. However, approval is not based solely on possessing the appropriate nationality or transferring money into the United States. A successful application must clearly and convincingly demonstrate treaty nationality, ownership and control, a substantial and committed investment, a real and non-marginal enterprise, and the applicant’s ability to develop and direct the business.
For Brazilian founders, the most effective E-2 strategy combines immigration planning with sound business planning. The case should reflect the same fundamentals that make any company attractive to investors: capital, customers, talent, execution, and growth. When these elements are aligned before filing, the E-2 Visa can become an effective bridge for bringing a Brazilian business into the U.S. market.
Written by Chris Costa, Senior Immigration Attorney at Drummond Advisors