If you want to invest in, establish, or expand a business in the United States, your immigration options depend on what you plan to do and whether you want to remain in the country temporarily or permanently. Immigrant investors may qualify for a U.S. visa based on investing in a U.S. enterprise, engaging in international trade, expanding a foreign company, creating U.S. jobs, or making a substantial gift to the U.S. government.
Immigration Desk helps investors and entrepreneurs identify the immigration option that supports their immediate business plans and long-term goals. Our attorneys have focused exclusively on immigration law for decades and have advised more than 15,000 corporate employers, investors, entrepreneurs, and individuals. We use that experience to help clients coordinate their business activities, financial commitments, supporting evidence, and immigration plans.
If you are an immigrant investor considering coming to the U.S., you may have temporary visa options, permanent residence options, or temporary visa options that may eventually lead to permanent residency.
U.S. immigration law provides nonimmigrant investor visas that authorize you to enter the U.S. for specific purposes temporarily. You may also qualify for a green card, allowing you to settle in the U.S. permanently, through an investment-based immigrant visa.
Your immigration attorney can advise you on which programs you may qualify for and help you apply for status through the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
If you are an investor interested in coming to the U.S. temporarily, common paths include:
An E-1 treaty trader visa,
An E-2 treaty investor visa, or
An L-1A intracompany transferee for managers or executives.
If you are an investor interested in coming to the U.S. and living here permanently, common paths include:
When your case is straightforward, the process feels routine. When it isn't, you need senior-level strategy, careful preparation, and ethical representation from a team that treats every petition as a priority. With 30+ years of combined immigration experience, award-winning Immigration Desk in Massachusetts, led by Attorney Anu Gupta, guides clients through a complex system with clarity and care.
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Every case gets equal priority We're deliberately smaller so you get direct attention from senior attorneys, not a paralegal working from a cookie-cutter template.
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Personal oversight from day one Attorney Anu Gupta personally screens every case, so risks are caught early and your petition is built on a solid foundation from the start.
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Quality over billable hours We take the time to understand your facts before filing, and we only take cases that meet our criteria.
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Rigorous, collaborative preparation This reduces the RFEs that come from missed red flags, and builds petitions meant to hold up if USCIS revisits your case years later.
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We're immigrants ourselves That lived experience, paired with ethical representation at every step, shapes how we treat every client on this journey.
Meet Your Attorney
Guided by Attorney Anu Gupta
Founder & Managing Attorney, Immigration Desk
Anu Gupta founded Immigration Desk in 1999 and has focused solely on immigration law ever since. She holds a Juris Doctor from DePaul University College of Law, is licensed to practice in New York and Illinois, and has personally advised more than 15,000 individuals and companies, including thousands of EB-1A and NIW self-filed cases.
Ranked among the Top 500 immigration attorneys worldwide by Who's Who Legal
Past Officer and USCIS Committee Liaison, American Immigration Lawyers Association
Inducted into the City of Newton, Massachusetts Hall of Fame
Discuss Your U.S. Investment Visa Strategy with Immigration Desk
U.S. law offers several options for immigrant investors who want to come to the U.S. temporarily or permanently. To discuss your options, including which visa may best support your investment and long-term immigration goals, contact Immigration Desk. We draw on decades of focused immigration experience to help investors and entrepreneurs immigrate to the United States.
Contact Immigration Desk to discuss your U.S. investment visa strategy.
Please contact us to discuss your case. To explore other visas, or for a listing of our services, please click on buttons below.
Immigration Desk – L1A for new company granted in 10 days (Oct 2022)
L1A granted October 2022 (decision time 10 days)
The people at Immigration Desk were great from the start, professional and organized. Starting with the consultation to advise me which visa type was right for the business I was looking to create in the US, they guided me on the best route and the pros and cons so that I could make an informed decision.
After deciding on the L1A route, it was clear what I needed to provide for my L1A petition. Everything was managed very professionally, and I was able to submit the petition as soon as the team at Immigration Desk has meticulously checked my documents and everything went as expected.
I received a minor RFE, which was expected since it was the first time my company had applied for a L1A. USCIS requested a minor clarification about my petition and Immigration Desk responded within 3 days. USCIS then issued the approval within 7 days. So once the documents were assembled it was very quick indeed.
I would definitely recommend them for the future and I know I will be needing them to move some of our employees in the near future.
EB3 to EB2 Conversion: Best in Class Service
EB3 to EB2 Conversion: I worked with Anu and her team from Immigration Desk. They provided best in class service, were very professional and responded quickly to my queries. Anu and her team were very courteous and even after filing the petition, I reached out to them to request guidance from time to time. I recommend them to all my friends who need any immigration help.
Anu Gupta and her team deliver: EB-1C green card approved in record time
Many thanks to Anu Gupta and her team, who managed my international manager green card case with 100% success.
Attorney Gupta and the Immigration Desk team filed my EB1-C I-140 and the I-485, I-131 etc. The I-140 application got approved without any RFE in 8 months. I really appreciate her commitment and for filing all our applications on time. Anu and Ian are meticulous with paperwork and her staff, are always there to assist us.
We listened to Anu's advice all the time, and it paid off. In 8 months, we got our green card approval without any RFE or interview.
In nutshell, Anu Gupta and her team are committed to their clients, timelines and deliver what is expected!"
Very impressive as a friend to her clients – Complex L1 approved
I first knew Anu Gupta from google-searching for " the best immigration lawyer in Boston area". I read lots of good comments about her. Therefore, I decided to try her services as my case for L1A application was a bit complicated. Anu is very serious lawyer with details and facts, she always looked for small details and connections of facts, so that my L1A application material was flawless and convincing. I am so glad that my L1A was approved just in 5 months from the very beginning of the application. Anu is very impressive as a friend to her clients. Her professionalism and her knowledgeable background are really helpful for the newcomers to enter the US market.
Thank you, Anu.
How Do Investors and Entrepreneurs Qualify for Temporary Visas?
Your circumstances and your intentions in the United States determine whether you may qualify for a temporary investor visa. The E-1 and E-2 visas share requirements that you be a national of a country that maintains a qualifying treaty with the U.S. and own an enterprise that shares your nationality.
How Can an E-1 Visa Support an International Business?
An E-1 visa allows qualifying treaty-country nationals to come to the U.S. to conduct international trade. You may qualify for an E-1 visa if:
Your enterprise conducts substantial trade through a sizable and continuing series of international transactions
More than 50 percent of the enterprise’s international trade occurs between the U.S. and the treaty country
You will develop and direct the enterprise from the U.S. once you receive the visa
These requirements may allow you to operate a business that regularly exchanges goods, services, technology, or other qualifying items between the U.S. and the treaty country.
Who Qualifies for an E-2 Treaty Investor Visa?
An E-2 visa allows you to come to the U.S. to develop and direct a business in which you have invested. You may qualify for an E-2 visa if:
You have invested or are investing a substantial amount of capital in a specific enterprise
You have committed your investment to the business and placed the funds at risk of loss
You own at least 50 percent of the enterprise or otherwise have the authority to develop and direct it
The enterprise generates or will generate more than enough income to support you or will otherwise make a significant economic contribution
Your investment must be substantial relative to the cost of establishing or purchasing the business.
How Can an L-1A Visa Support Investment in a U.S. Business?
An L-1A visa allows an international business to transfer an executive or manager from a foreign company to a related U.S. company. Your organization may qualify to transfer you to an established U.S. operation if:
The organization conducts business in the U.S. and at least one other country
The foreign and U.S. companies have a qualifying relationship
You worked for the qualifying organization abroad for one continuous year during the three years before your transfer
Your position abroad involves managerial or executive duties
You will work as a manager or executive for the U.S. company
If you come to the U.S. on an L-1A visa and decide you want to stay, you may be able to pursue an employment-based (EB) immigrant visa.
How Can Investors Qualify for Permanent Residence?
If you want to settle in the U.S. permanently, you can also apply for an immigrant investor visa or the new Trump Gold Card based on making a substantial financial commitment in the U.S. If you are already in the U.S. on temporary status, you may be able to apply without leaving the country.
How Does the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program Work?
Invest at least $1.05 million, or, if you invest in a qualifying rural area, high-unemployment area, or infrastructure project, at least $800,000 in a qualifying commercial enterprise
Place your capital at risk in the enterprise
Create at least 10 full-time jobs through the investment
When you immigrate through an EB-5 visa, you receive conditional permanent residence for two years. You can petition to remove those conditions by showing that you followed through on your investment plans.
What Are the Trump Gold Card Requirements?
President Trump’s Gold Card Program allows you to pursue permanent residence through the existing employment-based EB-1A or EB-2 immigrant visas. To qualify for an EB-1A visa, you typically need to have extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics. To qualify for the EB-2 visa without an employer sponsor, you typically must have exceptional ability in one of those fields, and your coming to the U.S. must be in the national interest.
To use the Gold Card program, you make a $1 million unrestricted gift to the U.S. government, or a corporation or similar organization makes a $2 million gift on your behalf. Immigration officials treat the gift as proof that you have extraordinary or exceptional ability in business and that allowing you to come to the U.S. would be in the national interest. You must also submit a nonrefundable $15,000 fee.
Other Alternatives?
EB1C for international managers
EB1A and NIW
Traditional employment based green cards (EB2 and EB3)
You may also qualify through a family member already settled in the US
