An entrepreneur is a person who takes steps forward to start a business. But being an immigrant entrepreneur is not an easy task, especially in the U.S. Starting from overcoming the language barriers to managing all the legal aspects and establishing a business or company in America is tough.
Aside from all the challenges small business entrepreneurs have made a growth of 30% between 1990-2010. That’s what motivates new immigrant entrepreneurs to invest in the US market.
1. Planning Your Business
There is a saying, ‘ well begun is half done ’ and the mission of becoming an entrepreneur starts with your business plan. The more effective your plan is, the more you will succeed. The planning phase starts with the question what business you are gonna do? There are plenty of business industries but you have to find the best industry that you can work on, with full confidence.
After selecting the business industry you have to think about the specific product or service that you are going to serve or start your business with. Having a huge list of products or services at the very start might not be a good idea rather you select a few couples of products and services in your niche that you are confident about.
Now you have to select the state where you want to establish your business. During state selection, you have to keep in mind that tax, vat, and business facilities vary according to the state rules in the USA. New York, Delaware, Montana, Nevada, and Wyoming are some states that are very preferable for immigrant business owners due to their easy business access policies and tax considerations.
You can also set up your business in states like California or Florida. In that case, you will need to seek help from immigration lawyers in Florida or California as the policy for immigrant entrepreneurs in these states are little strict.
If there is any specific state that dominates your niche market then you should go for that, on the other hand, if your business does not require any specific location or address then you might go for states like Delaware or Nevada as they consider tax shelters for both domestic and foreign businesses.
2. Register Your Business
Registering your business will provide the legal identity of your business with the laws and orders of the US. To register your business you have to decide on a name for your shop/company/organization or whatever enterprise you are building.
The name should be catchy and similar to your niche so that people can guess about your business by the name and also can remember the name quickly. It will help you grow your business faster.
Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is very important for a business owner in the US as every business requires a taxpayer number. But when you are an immigrant you will not be able to get a general taxpayer number so your ITIN will work as that. ITIN is issued to anyone by IRS which ensures you must pay the US taxes but don’t have a social security number (SSN).
After getting your ITIN number, you have to apply for Employer Identification Number (EIN). You will need the EIN to open a bank account, file your income tax return and also obtain a business license.
To register your business as a legal entity, you need to file documents referred to as ‘articles of incorporation’. You might need a registered lawyer to deal with all your legal procedures with the state authority to handle all the legal documents for your business.
3. Obtain An Entrepreneur Visa
First of all, we want to clarify that you do not need a visa for starting your business in the US. But we recommend you a visa for future opportunities to live and work in the country.
There are many types of visa available that permits you to stay and work in the US where we will talk about the most suitable visa types for an immigrant entrepreneur.
EB-1 Visa
Though the EB-1 visa is known as one of the most difficult visas to obtain, this is basically offered to individuals who have some extraordinary ability in their skilled fields. This visa grants you permission to work and live in the US as a permanent resident.
The US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) uses a point system to identify if an applicant is standard for extraordinary ability. There are 10 criteria points on the list you and have to fulfill al least three of them to get the expected visa.
EB–1 Visa will help you to get,
- Get labor certification
- Live indefinitely in the US with employment or without employment.
- Get a green card faster than any other visa.
E-2 Treaty Investor Visa
An E-2 investor visa is offered to investors that wish to live and work in the US and want to establish their own business company or buy a business in the country. This visa is only available for citizens from countries that fall under the Treaty of Trade and Commerce.
E–2 Visa offers you,
- Legalization of working for the companies that are functioning as investment media.
- Travel inside and outside the US
- Living in the US for two years, maintaining the E2 visa qualifications
- Bring along children under 21 or spouses with you
E-1 Treaty Trade Visa
The E-1 treaty trade visa is for the citizens of countries under the treaty of trade and commerce. But you can’t just work in one selective field and expect to get an E-1 visa. You also need to share the same nationality as that of your company and at least 50% equity of your company trade must be within the US.
This E-1 visa includes facilities such as,
- Live in the US for up to two years at a time
- Travel inside and outside the US
- Bring along children under 21 or spouses with you
- Work only with the mentioned work or company
Final Words
Starting a business as an immigrant entrepreneur in the USA is a long procedure. You have to go through a couple of legal activities to start your business on any premises in the US. But there is nothing to worry about as there are many facilities from the state authorities and the visa policies of the US. Only you might need a registered lawyer to handle all your files and make the operation accomplished.
