Business Immigration Lawyer in Texas for International Investors, Founders and Growing Companies

Immigration That Follows the Business Plan

Many founders choose a visa first and build the company around it later. That is backwards, and it can be costly. Who owns the shares, where the money comes from, which entity employs whom and how a deal is signed can each decide whether a visa path is open or closed.

We look at the whole picture from the start: company structure, investment, deal terms and the people you need in the United States, then line them up so each one supports the others. Every situation depends on its facts, and the earlier we see yours, the more options stay open.

• Visa planning before the company is formed or the deal is signed
• Ownership and control set up with the visa rules in mind
• Investment funds traced and documented from the start
• One team working in English, French and Spanish

E-2 Treaty Investor Visa: Lawyer Guidance in Texas

The E-2 visa lets a national of a treaty country come to the United States to develop and direct a real, operating business funded by a substantial investment of their own capital. The money must be at risk, the business cannot be marginal, and the investor generally must own at least half or control it. The related E-1 covers treaty traders.

Nationality decides eligibility, so it is our first question. On the State Department’s current treaty list, African E-2 countries include Cameroon, Senegal, Togo, Liberia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and both Congos. Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya do not appear on that list, so their nationals need a different route, and we can help find it.

L-1 Visa Attorney in Texas: Moving Key People for U.S. Expansion

If your company already operates abroad, the L-1 visa may let you transfer a trusted executive, manager or employee with specialized knowledge to a related U.S. office. The foreign and U.S. companies must be linked as parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate, and the employee generally must have worked for the group abroad for one continuous year in the last three.

The L-1 can also help a foreign company send a manager to open its first U.S. office, which calls for secured premises and a credible plan for the office to grow. This is where corporate structure and immigration meet most directly, and where careful planning before you file pays off.

EB-5 Investor Green Card: A Path to Permanent Residence

Unlike the E-2 and L-1, the EB-5 program can lead to a green card, and it is open to investors of any nationality. The investor puts capital into a new commercial enterprise that must create at least ten full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers, either directly or through a regional center project.

For petitions filed on or after March 15, 2022, USCIS lists a minimum of $1,050,000, or $800,000 in a targeted employment area or for a qualifying infrastructure project. These amounts are due to be adjusted for inflation from January 1, 2027, so we confirm current figures with you. The source of every dollar must be documented.

Other Pathways, and How We Work With You

Some situations call for other tools. The H-1B covers specialty occupations that usually require a degree, and the O-1 is for people with extraordinary ability in fields such as business or science. These categories change often, so we check the current rules, and how they apply to you, before recommending them.

From our main office in The Woodlands, with offices in Huntsville, Lagos and Abuja, we serve entrepreneurs in Africa and worldwide who are building in Texas. We cannot promise approvals or timelines, but we can give you a clear plan. Book a consultation now and let us map your route.

This page provides general information, not legal advice. Every situation depends on its facts. Contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship.