Forres

Hi All,

I lived in the US from 2000 to 2005. When I decided to move on my ex wife decided to stay on with the kids. They then became green card holders and now my son and daughter will be applying for citizenship soon. They keep asking me when I'm coming back to live there.

I beginning to warm to that idea again, after all its fourteen years since I left the US. If I go back I would certainly be looking at starting a business but the thing is should I go down the route of the E-2 visa or should I wait until the kids become full citizens, that way they can sponsor me as far as I'm aware. But don't know the ins and outs of this.

I have been doing a lot of due diligence on franchises and businesses, although everything is only in the thought process at the moment but does seem very expensive and doable. I do have the funds to do this but the question is, should i? I'd certainly like to be close to the kids again and spend good quality time with my grandson.

Any thoughts on what you would do?

Best Regards,

Willie

civilservant

How old are your children? They cannot sponsor you until they are 21 and have acquired US Citizenship. Be aware that processing times for naturalization are sliding back just like processing times for pretty much every visa these days.

I would personally go that route over the visa from hell (E2) since family sponsorship will give you a Green Card upon entry.

Forres

My daughter is 30 this year and my son is 27 this year. They were still primary school age when I took them over there.

On another question. If I get family sponsorship, I assume I can sponsor my wife (second wife) and my youngest daughter?

Just out of curiosity, how long does it normally take for an E2 visa to process? I'm in no hurry anyhow, whether this takes a year before I decide to put the wheels in motion I'm not too bothered either way.

civilservant

Your family will receive derivative visas, you do not need to 'sponsor' them individually, assuming your youngest daughter is not over 18.

No idea on the E2 length I'm afraid, but the immigrant visa typically takes around 12-18 months, and of course one of your children will have to apply for and gain USC first.

Forres

Thanks for the information, it look like I should really just wait until they get their citizenship before I do anything . My youngest daughter is 12.

I have toyed with the idea of setting up a business for my son to run. Do you know if I would be able to own a business as a non resident?

civilservant

You can, but the legal paperwork may be somewhat onerous. You would definitely need an experienced US based attorney to work with.

scrubbedexpat099

There are no derivatives for Immediate Relatives.

Pulaski

You can own anything you like in the US, even if you were legally barred from entering the US. Bear in mind that owning a business run by family members would likely flag you as an over-stay risk, at least until you start a visa process, which IMO shows that you have chosen a legal route to a visa, and likely reduces the perceived risk of overstaying.
Some members of BE like to making scathing comments about the E-2 and it's many downsides, and while I agree with many of the criticisms, in a case such as yours where there is a very high probability of an exit strategy i.e. route to permanent residence, and not too far into the future, then I think at E-2 can make a lot of sense.

Under the circumstances you have given, with your US-resident children not yet being citizens themselves, you are looking at a minimum of two years for them to get US citizenship, and another couple of years for their sponsorship of you to run its course, so a minimum of four years from now, by which time your youngest daughter will be 16, which would mean moving here after GCSE's and in the middle of the four-year US high school program, which can get really messy, … not to mention that she will be in the middle of her teenage years and likely be most resistant to breaking relationships with her friends, in other words, it will be easier for her to establish new friendships at 12-13 than it will be at age 16.

So my recommendation under your specific circumstances would be to pursue an E-2 ASAP if possible, and get your daughter established in school, and then adjust status in due course when your older children have sponsored you and your family for permanent residence.

scrubbedexpat099

Not enough information to clarify if the Children can sponsor the StepMother, the daughter would be a sibling which takes a very long time.

scrubbedexpat099

Mr P

Well they could get them all together but that would take a very long time.

Pulaski

But once the father is a permanent resident he can sponsor his own immediate family members, i.e. spouse and daughter for visas …… I can see that it would be messy, with possibly multiple transitions between statuses, but permanent residents have rights to sponsor family members for a visa so they can all live together. I can see this would be a good case to get some advice from an experience immigration attorney regarding available routes and the best strategy.

scrubbedexpat099

Well using your timeline the daughter would be 16 and here on an E2 possibly also the Mother, he becomes a LPR and sponsors them which currently takes 2 years or so.

So E2 assuming they all want to come over soonish and together seems the only practical way.

Forres

I've just been talking to my daughter in the US. She completed the application yesterday for citizenship and says the timeline is 9.5 - 22.5 months so I guess two years it is. So perhaps the E2 would be practical in this case with a strategy to eventual permanent residence, through my son or daughter.

I still need to make a trip over there to do some ground work before I set the ball rolling for the E2. I will keep you updated as the months go by. I'm in no hurry but as someone pointed out, my younger daughter is 12 years old and don't want to be waiting until she's sixteen to do this.