The E-2 Treaty Investor Visa continues to be one of the most reliable nonimmigrant visa options for qualified investors and entrepreneurs from treaty countries.
According to official U.S. Department of State nonimmigrant visa statistics, E-2 visas issued by U.S. consulates in FY 2024 reflect an approval rate of approximately 90% (based on visas issued versus refusals). This confirms that, for well-prepared applicants, consular E-2 processing remains a highly viable and successful pathway. Official source: https://lnkd.in/g2ag72ey
Despite these strong approval trends, we sometimes encounter the suggestion that applicants should enter the U.S. on a tourist (B-2) or student (F-1) visa and later apply for a change of status to E-2. As immigration counsel, we do not recommend this approach.
Why? • B-2 and F-1 visas require nonimmigrant intent, and a pre-planned E-2 strategy may raise misrepresentation concerns; • Timing issues (including the commonly referenced 90-day rule) can negatively affect credibility; • A change of status grants E-2 status only, not an E-2 visa, requiring consular processing anyway for future travel; • USCIS adjudications are not inherently easier and can be less predictable than consular processing.
Given the consistently high E-2 approval rates at U.S. consulates, applying directly for an E-2 visa abroad is often the cleaner, safer, and more transparent strategy.
It is worth to say that each case is fact-specific, but when approval rates are already strong, unnecessary immigration risks rarely serve the applicant’s long-term interests.
