E-2 Visas provide refuge to those escaping violence in Mexico

(San Diego- Latindispatch.com)- Last year Jorge, a Tijuana business owner who asked for anonymity for safety reasons, was driving home from work when several cars attempted to corner him.  When he realized that he was in the middle of a classic kidnap setup, he quickly accelerated and squeezed his Mini-Cooper in between two of the cars. As Jorge escaped, shots rang out behind him and he arrived to the police station with a bullet wound to his arm.  At the station, however, the police told Jorge that there was little that they could do for him.

Since 1994, one option available to wealthy Mexicans who flee the violence in their country is to apply for an E-2 or Investor’s Visa.  While the State Department only says that the investment needed must be “substantial,” immigration attorney Jacob Sapochnick says that a recommended investment varies between 50,000 to 100,000 dollars but applicants must be aware that some consulates can require as much as $500,000.

One thing to note is that holders of tourist visas in the U.S. who apply for asylum risk losing those visas if their case is denied, according Sapochnick.  Applying for refugee or asylum status demonstrates the intention to stay permanently in the U.S. — a measure used by the State Department as the basis to deny a tourist visa, Sapochnick says.

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