IN THIS GUIDE · Ask the seller the questions that decide whether a Boischatel contractor's U.S. purchase is a real E-2 investment
Start with the E-2 eligibility and application overview
Ask what you are actually buying before the deposit
Hypothetical example: a Boischatel excavation contractor is offered an established landscaping and snow-removal company in northern New Hampshire. The first questions are for the seller: which assets transfer, which contracts are assignable, whether the trucks are owned or leased, and whether the customer list has any exclusivity. E-2 looks at what the investor's money buys and whether it puts him in charge of a functioning business. A purchase that is mostly goodwill with no assignable contracts is a weaker investment than a smaller one with equipment and signed accounts.
Make the commitment irrevocable in a way the consulate can read
Funds sitting in the investor's own account are not invested. Funds paid into escrow that releases on visa approval, equipment purchased, a lease signed and deposits paid, a franchise fee remitted: these are commitments at risk. The consular officer wants to see that the money would be lost if the business failed. Document each transfer with the bank record and the contract it satisfied. Loans secured on the business itself do not count as investor capital; loans secured on the investor's Québec home may.
Prove the source of every dollar, in French if that is how it exists
The investor must show that the capital was lawfully obtained. For a Boischatel contractor that usually means years of business accounts, personal tax returns, a notarized sale of equipment or a refinanced property, each traced to the account from which the U.S. payment was made. Québec notarial deeds and Revenu Québec assessments are acceptable evidence with certified translation. Gaps in the trail are what trigger requests for more.
Keep control and keep it Canadian
The investor must develop and direct the enterprise. Fifty percent ownership or more usually shows that; a smaller stake needs operational control through the governing documents. If a U.S. partner will hold a share, the treaty-nationality ownership must still reach at least fifty percent. A Boischatel investor who plans to stay in Québec most of the year and let a manager run the business should raise that with counsel, because E-2 is a status for someone who is actually directing the enterprise.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.