New York immigrants who have E2 or E1 visas need to be aware that the U.S. government has reduced the validity periods of E1 and E2 visas for people from many countries. The latest country to have the E1 and E2 visa validity periods reduced is the Netherlands.
Dutch people who were approved for E1 or E2 visas previously had validity periods of five years, which meant that they could live and work in the U.S. for that duration. However, the government recently reduced the validity period for people from the Netherlands to three years. This means that people from the Netherlands with E1 or E2 visas who wish to remain in the U.S. for longer than three years will have to apply to renew their visas much earlier.
The federal government also increased the fees for E1 and E2 visas for people from the Netherlands from $0 to $2,228. Similarly, the government increased the L1 application fee for Dutch nationals from $0 to $73. The government has likewise reduced the validity periods of E1 and E2 visas for people from many other countries.
In addition to reducing the periods of validity for E1 and E2 visas and increasing the application fees, the number of refusals has also dramatically increased. These changes are part of the government’s drive to limit immigration. Foreign nationals who want to secure E1 treaty investor or E2 treaty trader visas might want to work with experienced immigration law attorneys. Immigration lawyers may help their clients to complete their applications and submit all of the supporting documents correctly so that their likelihood of being approved for E1 or E2 visas might be increased. The lawyers may also assist with visa renewals of E1 or E2 visas when their clients need to remain in the U.S. to continue their business operations for longer than the validity periods.
