IN THIS GUIDE · Assess the franchise agreement and the investor's actual operating plan
Establish the investment and enterprise requirements
The applicant and enterprise must have the required treaty nationality, and the applicant must develop and direct the enterprise. Substantial capital must be committed at risk in a real operating business. Non-marginality means considering capacity to provide more than a minimal living for the investor and family, including the alternative of a significant economic contribution. Review enterprise nationality through the ownership records, not only the applicant's passport. A purchase price or ownership percentage in isolation cannot establish all these conditions. Ask which items are binding, refundable, personally secured, or still only quoted. That distinction changes both the risk analysis and the order in which the transaction should proceed.
Read beyond the franchise fee
Identify premises, equipment, stock and operating needs as well as the initial brand-related charge. Separate supported estimates from payments already made. A brochure's startup range may be useful commercially but does not determine the investment analysis for this applicant's arrangement. Price the business the applicant will actually operate, including opening needs and working capital. A brand's generic illustration cannot prove the proportionality of this investment.
Explain control within the franchise model
Provide the management terms and the applicant's intended responsibilities. Identify restrictions and decisions retained by the franchisor. The reviewer should assess the actual rights and work plan rather than assuming a franchise either automatically qualifies or automatically prevents the applicant from directing the business. Read the operating agreement and franchise controls together. The decision is whether the investor retains meaningful development and direction, not whether another party supplies a system.
Trace the funding conditions
Read any loans, security arrangements and payment conditions together. Identify which party receives each payment and when it can be returned. Do not use a generic financing description when the actual documents allocate risk or control differently. Trace each dollar from its lawful origin through the account, transfer, and destination. A bank balance alone leaves the reviewer without the path of funds.
Check operating assumptions independently
Distinguish the franchisor's illustration from the applicant's supported plan for this location. Ask appropriate advisers to examine commercial and immigration issues separately. Neither brand recognition nor a sales forecast guarantees that the proposed business or application will succeed. Test revenue and staffing assumptions against a supported operating plan. A projection should explain why the business can grow beyond personal support, not simply repeat sales targets.
Verify nationality and the funding trail
An enterprise generally needs at least 50% ownership by nationals of the relevant treaty country; trace the actual ownership and confirm the applicable nationality rules. Establish the lawful source and path of the invested funds. E-2 has no universal minimum dollar amount, and its substantiality and non-marginality tests are not the EB-5 investment or ten-job thresholds. Confirm nationality through ownership documents and passports where relevant. E-2 is not an EB-5 substitute and does not create permanent residence merely because the business succeeds.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.