How investors from non-treaty countries such as China can apply for the U.S. E-2 through a third-country nationality

Wang Law Firm, LLC · David Wang, Managing Attorney · Attorney-reviewed · Updated October 2026

Information checked: October 2026. Program rules and amounts change often; check the country's current official rules.

The E-2 treaty investor visa lets nationals of a treaty country invest in and personally run a business in the United States. Your spouse and unmarried children under 21 can come with you, and the visa can be renewed as long as the business keeps genuinely operating. There's no visa backlog, and cases are mainly decided through a consular interview, so it's often compared with EB-5. But E-2 has one precondition: the applicant must be a national of a country that has the relevant treaty with the United States. Mainland China is not on the list, which is why the "third-country nationality + E-2" idea exists.

This route is not simple. The AMIGOS Act, which took effect at the end of 2022, added a 3-year continuous domicile requirement for people who acquire nationality through investment, and citizenship-by-investment programs have been tightening over the past two years. This article breaks the route into several parts: why you can't apply directly, how to choose a third country, what the 3-year domicile requirement actually means, what E-2 itself requires, and the common pitfalls.

1. Why mainland Chinese citizens can't apply for E-2 directly

The legal basis for E-2 is section 101(a)(15)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA): the applicant must be a national of a country with which the United States maintains a treaty of commerce and navigation (or an arrangement Congress treats as equivalent, such as a bilateral investment treaty). Which countries qualify for E-1 and E-2 is determined by the U.S. Department of State's published Treaty Countries list.

• Mainland China: The People's Republic of China is not on the list. People holding a Chinese passport cannot apply for E-1 or E-2.
• Taiwan: The list includes "China (Taiwan)," with both E-1 and E-2 in effect since November 30, 1948. A State Department footnote explains that the agreement was concluded with the Taiwan authorities before January 1, 1979, and is now carried out on an unofficial basis through the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). In practice, people who hold a Taiwan passport and meet the nationality determination can apply for E-2 on that basis; for specific document requirements, check AIT's current rules.
• Hong Kong: Hong Kong is not on the list. Hong Kong permanent residents of Chinese nationality holding an HKSAR passport are, for E-2 purposes, ineligible in the same way as mainland Chinese nationals; the same applies to Macau. Whether a holder of a British National (Overseas) passport, BN(O), can apply under the U.K. treaty depends on how the U.K. treaty defines "national"; this must be verified case by case and cannot be assumed.

Two common misunderstandings to note:

• It's nationality that counts, not residence status. Holding a permanent residence card, a long-term visa or a green card from a treaty country does not substitute for that country's nationality.
• Where a company is incorporated does not determine its nationality. The State Department's Foreign Affairs Manual (9 FAM 402.9-4(B)) makes clear that a business's nationality is determined by the nationality of its individual owners; the place of incorporation does not determine the business's nationality. Incorporating a company in a treaty country and having it controlled by Chinese-national shareholders does not give the business treaty-country nationality.

2. The basic "third-country nationality + E-2" approach

The idea itself is straightforward: first lawfully acquire the nationality of an E-2 treaty country, then invest in a U.S. business and apply for E-2 as a national of that country. But each step has firm requirements:

1. Choose a country: The country must be on the E-2 treaty list, and a path to its nationality must be available to you (citizenship by investment, residence first and then naturalization, descent, marriage and so on).
2. Acquire nationality: This is handled by that country's licensed lawyers or authorized agents; the review includes due diligence, source of funds, a clean criminal record and so on.
3. Meet the AMIGOS Act 3-year domicile requirement (if you acquired nationality through a financial investment; see Part 3).
4. Invest in the U.S.: At least 50% of the U.S. business must be owned by nationals of that treaty country; the investment must be "substantial," the funds at risk, the business non-marginal, and you personally must develop and direct it.
5. File the E-2: Usually you submit the DS-160 and E-2 materials to a U.S. embassy or consulate, and the visa is issued after the interview. In recent years the State Department has made many procedural changes, such as to where you interview (in principle, you apply in your country of nationality or residence); verify the latest rules before filing.

Another easily overlooked rule: a single E-2 business can have only one "qualifying nationality." The State Department's manual (9 FAM 402.9) requires the business's owners and all employees working in E visa status to have the same treaty-country nationality (the manual has separate provisions for a few special ownership structures). An owner with dual nationality must choose which nationality to apply under.

3. The AMIGOS Act: the 3-year continuous domicile requirement

The text and what it means

Section 5902 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263), signed on December 23, 2022, incorporated the AMIGOS Act (S. 1194 / H.R. 2571) and added parenthetical language to INA section 101(a)(15)(E). For a foreign national who "acquired the relevant nationality through a financial investment and has not previously been granted status under this subparagraph" (E status), the statute limits their country of nationality to:

"the foreign state of which the alien is a national and in which the alien has been domiciled for a continuous period of not less than 3 years at any point before applying for a nonimmigrant visa under this subparagraph"

In short: only the country of which the person is a national, and in which the person was domiciled for a continuous period of at least 3 years at any point before applying for an E nonimmigrant visa, counts as the country of nationality for E visa purposes. The same law also extended E-1 and E-2 eligibility to Portuguese nationals (the State Department list notes that E visas for Portuguese nationals began to be issued on March 15, 2024).

Broken down, the requirement has three elements:

• "Acquired nationality through a financial investment": Typical citizenship-by-investment (CBI) programs are clearly covered. People who acquired nationality by birth, descent or marriage generally are not subject to this limit.
• "Has not previously been granted E status": People who have previously been granted E status are not bound by the new requirement. Whether someone who was in the U.S. as an E-2 dependent and later applies as the principal applicant counts as having "previously been granted status under this subparagraph" is not spelled out in the statute and needs case-by-case analysis.
• "Domiciled continuously for 3 years at any point before applying": The statute says "at any point before applying," so on its face it does not require the 3 years to immediately precede the application date, nor does it expressly require them to come after naturalization. Whether time lived in the country before naturalization can count currently lacks any public official interpretation, and you should not assume it does.

The State Department's implementation details are governed by the Foreign Affairs Manual, 9 FAM 402.9, and consular practice. As of the date this article was checked, we did not find a specific definition of "domicile" or a list of evidence in the public text of 9 FAM 402.9, so the discussion below of how to prove it is our analysis based on the general meaning of the term in U.S. law, not an official standard.

What "domicile" means and how to prove it

In U.S. law, "domicile" usually demands more than "residence": it generally means the place where a person actually lives and intends to treat as their principal, long-term home. A person can have several residences at once but usually has only one domicile. So occasional visits, short vacations, or "paper residence" with an address but no actual life there are unlikely to be considered domicile.

In practice, evidence you might consider preparing includes (this is not an official list):

• A long-term lease or property in your own name, along with utility, internet and other household bills;
• Entry and exit records showing you spent most of your time in that country;
• A local bank account and records of everyday spending;
• Tax records in that country or proof of tax residence;
• Local employment, business, social insurance or health care registration;
• Records of your children's enrollment in local schools;
• A driver's license, resident registration, and ties such as community or religious group involvement.

Conversely, if during the same period you still had a full-time job, a primary home, children in school and tax records in China or another country, a consular officer is likely to question where your domicile really is.

Effect on timeline and cost

• Time: "Apply for E-2 immediately after naturalizing" is no longer feasible in most citizenship-by-investment cases. Your planning needs to include at least 3 years of actual residence, plus the time to process the citizenship itself and to prepare the E-2.
• Living arrangements: Whether the whole family moves to that country, where the children go to school, and how to handle your job and business at home all need to be thought through in advance.
• Cost: Beyond the citizenship investment and government fees, factor in 3 years of local housing, living and education expenses, as well as any local tax residence and filing obligations that may arise (please consult a local tax professional).
• Capital tied up: The citizenship investment and the U.S. E-2 investment are two separate sums; the citizenship investment cannot be counted toward the E-2 investment.
• Policy risk: During the 3-year waiting period, the country's program rules, the U.S. treaty list, or how the rules are applied may all change.

4. Comparing citizenship-by-investment countries that can lead to E-2

In the table below, the "E-2 effective date" comes from the State Department treaty country list; investment thresholds, holding periods and so on are all compiled according to 2026 public sources — check the country's current official rules. These programs have changed frequently in recent years; the table lists only the main routes we were able to cross-check, and government fees, due diligence fees, agent fees and so on are extra.

A few notes:

• Everyone who acquires nationality through the investment programs above faces the AMIGOS Act 3-year domicile requirement before applying for E-2. Whether the country of citizenship itself requires residence is a separate question from the U.S. law domicile requirement.
• In 2026, the EU, citing Schengen visa-free access, called on Caribbean citizenship-by-investment countries to phase out their programs; North Macedonia's arrangements have also drawn EU attention. Programs may be amended, have their thresholds raised, or be suspended at any time.
• According to a statement issued by Turkey's Ministry of Interior in August 2026 (reported by multiple media outlets), a total of 6,134 people who acquired nationality through investment (including spouses and children) have had their nationality revoked, mainly because of collusive or improper transactions uncovered in verification, with some on public order and national security grounds. Both program review and after-the-fact verification are being stepped up.

For detailed country information, see the Grenada and Turkey pages.

5. Why the other four Caribbean countries can't lead to E-2

The Eastern Caribbean has five citizenship-by-investment countries: Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica and St. Lucia. Only Grenada is on the E-2 treaty country list (under a bilateral investment treaty in effect since 1989). The other four have no E-2 treaty arrangement with the United States, so their passports cannot be used to apply for E-2, regardless of how citizenship was acquired or how long you have lived there.

In addition, Presidential Proclamation 10998, signed December 16, 2025 and effective January 1, 2026, partially suspends the issuance of immigrant visas and B-1/B-2, F, M and J nonimmigrant visas to nationals of Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica, citing the two countries' citizenship-by-investment programs as one of the reasons; the proclamation also calls for shortening the validity of other nonimmigrant visas for nationals of these two countries. E visas are not within the suspension, but these two countries were not E-2 treaty countries to begin with. The proclamation provides for periodic review and may be adjusted later; check the State Department's current announcements. For more, see the Caribbean citizenship-by-investment overview.

6. Residence first, then citizenship: Panama and Europe

Another approach is to first obtain residence by investment (often called a "golden visa") in an E-2 treaty country, live there for years, and then apply to naturalize under that country's nationality law. Panama (E-2 only, since May 30, 1991), Portugal (E-1 and E-2, since March 15, 2024), Italy and Latvia are on the E-2 list; Spain and Ireland are E-2 treaty countries, but their residence-by-investment programs have stopped accepting new applications; Greece has only E-1, not E-2; Hungary, Malta and Cyprus are not currently on the list.

• It takes longer: Naturalization usually requires years of lawful residence, often along with language and culture tests and minimum days physically present, and it is decided by that country's government; it is not granted automatically after investing.
• The residence itself is substantive: Actually living there for years in order to naturalize also tends, as a practical matter, to create strong evidence of domicile.
• Whether AMIGOS applies needs case-by-case analysis: The statute targets those who "acquired nationality through a financial investment." Whether someone who obtained residence through investment and later naturalized based on years of residence falls into this category is not clearly answered by either the statute or public State Department guidance; it must be judged case by case based on the basis for naturalization and the facts of residence.

See Panama Qualified Investor permanent residence and European golden visas.

7. Key requirements of the E-2 itself

Acquiring treaty-country nationality only gets you in the door. The E-2 application itself still has to meet each requirement:

• At least 50% of the U.S. business is owned by nationals of that treaty country, and you personally develop and direct the business (by owning more than 50% or having operational control);
• You have invested, or are actively investing, a "substantial" amount of capital that is at risk and irrevocably committed to the business;
• The business is a real, operating commercial enterprise, not a passive investment (for example, simply holding rental property or stocks);
• The business cannot be "marginal": it should be able to generate more than a minimal living for the investor's family, or make a significant contribution to the U.S. economy;
• The funds come from lawful sources and can be fully traced;
• You intend to leave the United States when your E status ends.

For detailed requirements, ways to invest and documents, see the E-2 hub; for how to write a business plan, see E-2 business plan. E-2 visa validity is set by the reciprocity arrangement for the country of the passport the applicant holds, and it varies widely by nationality; check the State Department's current reciprocity schedule.

8. A reminder about PRC nationality law

Article 3 of the Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China provides that the PRC does not recognize dual nationality for Chinese citizens; Article 9 provides that a Chinese citizen who has settled abroad and who voluntarily acquires or obtains a foreign nationality automatically loses Chinese nationality. Before acquiring a third-country nationality, objectively assess the potential effects on your household registration (hukou), Chinese passport, how you enter and leave China, real estate and financial assets in China, inheritance, social insurance, children's education and so on. These are questions of Chinese law; we recommend consulting a professional such as a lawyer licensed in China.

9. Limits of the E-2

• It's not a green card: E-2 is a nonimmigrant visa. It cannot convert directly into a green card, and time in E-2 status does not count toward the residence required to become a U.S. citizen. If your ultimate goal is a green card, you should also evaluate paths such as EB-5.
• It depends on the business: If the business stops operating, is sold, or you no longer run it, the basis for your E-2 status disappears; at renewal, the consular officer will review how the business is actually operating.
• Spouse: Your spouse can accompany you as an E-2 dependent. Under current USCIS policy, an E-2 spouse is employment authorized incident to status, as shown by the corresponding annotation on the I-94; check USCIS's current announcements for details.
• Children: Unmarried children under 21 can accompany you and attend school in the U.S., but cannot work as dependents; after turning 21 they must change to another status (such as F-1) or leave the United States. Families with older children should build this into the timeline along with the 3-year domicile period.
• Dependents' nationality: Dependents do not need treaty-country nationality, but the principal applicant must be a national of the treaty country.

10. Common misconceptions

• "Once I buy a passport, I can apply for E-2 right away." People who acquired nationality through a financial investment and have never been granted E status must first meet the 3-year continuous domicile requirement.
• "Any Caribbean passport works for E-2." Of the five countries, only Grenada is an E-2 treaty country.
• "The citizenship investment can count as the E-2 investment." The two are separate; the E-2 investment must go into a U.S. business.
• "Just incorporate a company in a treaty country." A business's nationality follows its owners' nationality, not where it is incorporated.
• "Getting a residence card and visiting now and then counts as living there." Domicile means a real principal home; paper arrangements are very risky.
• "E-2 can gradually turn into a green card." E-2 has no direct path to a green card; you must separately qualify under an immigrant category.
• "Program rules won't change." Countries' thresholds, reviews and residence requirements have changed often in recent years, and the U.S. treaty list and visa policies may also be adjusted.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• U.S. Department of State: Treaty Countries (E-1/E-2 treaty country list)
• U.S. Department of State: Visa Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country (reciprocity schedule)
• U.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual, 9 FAM 402.9 (E visas)
• U.S. Government Publishing Office: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263, Section 5902)
• U.S. Congress: AMIGOS Act text (S. 1194)
• Grenada Investment Migration Agency

Related reading

• E-2 hub: requirements, ways to invest and documents
• Turkey citizenship by investment and the U.S. E-2
• Grenada citizenship by investment and the U.S. E-2
• How to write an E-2 business plan
• Global mobility planning section home

This article is general information, not legal advice. Our firm provides U.S. immigration legal services only and is not an authorized agent for any citizenship-by-investment program; for citizenship or residence matters in other countries, please consult a locally licensed lawyer or a government-authorized agent.