Investor Visas – Possible Important Changes

On December 15, 2022, Congress passed the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, which, among other things, requires that foreign nationals who obtain citizenship in a country based on investment must reside in that country for no less than 3 years before using that nationality to seek an E2 investor visa to reside in the United States.

This is an important change, as nationals of foreign countries without an E2 treaty with the United States have not previously had to reside in a country in which they obtained citizenship through investment before using that citizenship to apply for E2 investor visas.

Countries like Grenada offer foreigners who do not have nationality in a country with an E2 treaty with the United States the opportunity to obtain nationality based on investment and immediately qualify for E2 visa applications based on that nationality.