E2 Visa renewal

[NJB]

Our E2 Visa expires in April 2005. Has anyone out there renewed an E2?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. i.e how to pay the application fee from the US? How long it takes? How much info did you send?

cheers!!

[esprit]

Have to say most people I know use an attorney or immigration consultant. I am sure you can do it alone, but you know what they are like, one thing in the wrong place or missing and they will reject the whole lot. I have heard it is relatively easy to get through Texas but it isnt done and dusted until you have been home and been to the embassy for interview. That means leaving your entire life in Florida behine and going home without knowing whether you will be able to get back in, or when. That frightens the hell out of me.

[MAKRIDA]

We just renewed ours in August 2004 . Like Julie I had the bejeebers scared out of me by the thoughts of going back To UK for an indetermined length of time to renew at an embassy outside the US. It lit enough of a bomb under me to get all our documentation together and get it into the mail by July 8th which was the cutoff date for renewals by mail. I was still a nervous wreck waiting but our package came back ok, no letter or anything, just all the copies of stuff I had sent, with the 2 passports on top with new visas to august 2009. Such a relief. We didn't use an attorney or anything, I just printed the forms and instructions off the website, and followed them carefully, and checked and double checked everything. The payment we made with a business check ($410.00). I'm trying to reassure you but unfortunately I have no idea how it will work now that you can't do that any more. I think you have a years grace from when your old visa expires. ours had expired Feb 2004, but I had renewed our I94 already, which seems to be very important, so even though our visa had technically expired, we were still in legal status because our I 94 is up to Feb 2006. We will have to leave and re-enter again before then , but we usually just do a cruise for that. Sorry for all the waffle, maybe I can write again with more info later.....

[NJB]

Hi

Thanks for your replies [grouphug]

Can you tell me was the profit for the business more than marginal?
Ours is a new start up business and we are currently making about $2000 profit per month (After all business and personal expenses) after 15 months of trading.

NJB

[florida4sun]

They will be looking for an owner draw of around $80k for a family of 4. I just had freinds return to the uk as their first renewal was declined, no reason given and they will not reply to any questions. I have no idea why as they had a business every bit as good as ours and we ha no trouble wit renewal. I can only assume the owner draw was not enough.

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by NJB
Hi

Thanks for your replies [grouphug]

Can you tell me was the profit for the business more than marginal?
Ours is a new start up business and we are currently making about $2000 profit per month (After all business and personal expenses) after 15 months of trading.

NJB
[/quote]

[esprit]

$2000 per month is low. I dont know how you are living on that and the embassy wont either. You need employees too on renewal, even if you dont have them on initial application. From what I hear on the ground, Martin, it is getting harder and harder in the time since you did yours, Were your friends turned down in Texas or at interview in the UK: I can think of nothing worse than getting to the window and being turned down. It is scaring the wits out of a lot of us. This business of not even having to give a reason for refusal is just marvellous.

[florida4sun]

They were turned down by london, they were given 180 days to leave the country and thats it. Many letters have gone un answered. The pressure was too much and they left. Its an awful way to be treated.

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by esprit
$2000 per month is low. I dont know how you are living on that and the embassy wont either. You need employees too on renewal, even if you dont have them on initial application. From what I hear on the ground, Martin, it is getting harder and harder in the time since you did yours, Were your friends turned down in Texas or at interview in the UK: I can think of nothing worse than getting to the window and being turned down. It is scaring the wits out of a lot of us. This business of not even having to give a reason for refusal is just marvellous.

[/quote]

[MAKRIDA]

scary stuff. I would hope that they may be more lenient with a start up business thats only been going 2 years, than an established business. Is your business showing steady growth since start up ? This is what they would be looking for I think. Good luck with everything, and make sure you renew your I 94 first, it is important that it does not expire. we had friends who renewed their Visa ok, but because they had not renewed the I94 they had to have lengthy interviews with immigration officers at the airport the next time they left the US then tried to get back in. They said it was very nerve wracking as they thought that they were going to be turned away, and their home , business, animals, are here, and they no longer have a base in the UK. They eventually got in, as the officials believed it was a genuine oversight and they had the new Visa, but were given a very stern warning not to let it happen again. This stuff is unbelievable for those of us who are here legally and try to do the right thing.[msneek]

[esprit]

The Americans make no attempt to do anything about the millions of illegals here and from time to time they even amnesty them, yet things are made harder and harder for legitimates who have done the right thing and pay their taxes and yet they will always be visa holders and never amnestied. The Brits here at the moment on E and L all have the sword of Damocles hanging over us with this new renewal policy, if you read the immigration forums there are horror stories that would fill one with absolute dread. I know only the people for whom things go wrong bother to post, but even so it gives you the collywobbles. Some people get marooned in the UK for weeks, meanwhile their businesses here go to rack and ruin.

[NJB]

Our business is steadily growing & we do employ three Americans.

Does anybody know anything about the visa extension, which you can do here?

Or, if we have up to 12 months after the visa expires to stay, maybe we should wait til the business has grown a bit more and then apply.

We went back to the UK in July so we have I94 til July '06