An E-2 buyer needs to know what the transaction actually transfers and how the business will operate afterward. Asset and share purchases can produce different evidence and obligations. Neither structure replaces the nationality, control, investment and nonmarginality requirements. A buyer must choose whether the available deal produces an operating enterprise with a documented ownership and funding story, or whether a different structure is needed. Start by marking every condition that affects control, transfer of assets, premises, licences and the investor's ability to direct the operation. The first review should produce a closing checklist paired with an immigration evidence list. Hypothetical example: A Canadian owner proposes to purchase a U.S. mushroom-growing operation, but the seller retains the growing licence and key customer contracts pending a later approval. The buyer must decide whether the acquisition can operate as described or whether the transaction needs a different sequence and clearer documentation.
Identify the continuing enterprise
Review the assets, ownership interests, contracts and rights included. Identify exclusions and consents still required. A seller’s operating history should not be assumed to transfer intact when the buyer acquires only part of the business. Identify what will exist on day one after closing. For an asset purchase, list each asset, contract and right transferred; for a share purchase, examine the company and its continuing liabilities and ownership. The decision is whether the enterprise described in the application is the one the agreement creates. A vague asset schedule can leave a business without the essential items used to show it is operational.
Explain the money and authority
Trace lawful source and path, final consideration and conditions. Establish the investor’s actual control and the enterprise’s relevant treaty nationality. A signed price or ownership summary may leave important governing provisions unexplained. Follow the funds from lawful source to the commitment and explain every adjustment, loan, gift or intermediary. Then verify the investor's nationality and practical authority through the actual ownership documents. The records should answer who owns, who decides and whose money is committed. A signature page and a bank balance do not, by themselves, prove all three.
Test the post-closing plan
Apply the actual nonmarginality standard using credible revenue, expense and staffing evidence. Unlike EB-5, E-2 sets neither a universal purchase-price floor nor a ten-job threshold. Coordinate transaction and immigration advice without treating either professional review as a guarantee of business success. Test the enterprise against a realistic forecast rather than a preferred outcome. The investment must be substantial in relation to the venture, exposed to commercial risk and directed toward a business that is not marginal. The investor should decide whether staffing, revenue and expense assumptions can be supported before relying on them. An E-2 classification is temporary and does not itself create a guaranteed immigration path.
What else is on your mind?
Is there one minimum investment that guarantees E-2 eligibility?Is holding money or owning an asset enough for E-2?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.