The E-2 visa: the American door the 1957 treaty opens for Dutch citizens

As a Dutch citizen you can go and live in America with the E-2 treaty investor visa: you invest in a real American business and run it yourself. America has no general emigration route, but this gives Dutch citizens a door of their own.

That door rests on the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the Netherlands and the United States. The treaty has been in force since 5 December 1957. Colloquially, the visa is known as "the DAFT visa".

The core:

• You invest a substantial amount in a real American business.
• You run that business yourself.
• Then you may live in the US with your family.

You need no employer to sponsor you, and there is no quota and no lottery. Two things weigh against that. The visa does not lead to a green card, the proof of permanent residence. And your file sits on the pile in Amsterdam for twelve weeks or more.

Which four requirements must you meet?

Your money must really be in the business. The capital must be invested or demonstrably on its way, and it must be at risk: subject to partial or total loss if the venture fails. Money in a bank account with the intention of starting something someday does not count. The consulate does accept an investment still to be made, provided the funds are irrevocably committed and wait only for the visa.

The amount must be substantial, but there is no minimum. The consulate in Amsterdam writes literally that there is no fixed amount that counts as "substantial". What matters is the ratio to what the enterprise costs, measured with the proportionality test: the cheaper the enterprise, the higher the share you must put in yourself.

The business may not be marginal. It must now or in the near future yield more than a minimal living for you and your family. A new enterprise that cannot yet do so is still acceptable if it reaches that capacity within five years. A one-person business that yields exactly enough to live on is marginal and therefore not enough.

You must run it yourself. You show that you develop and direct the enterprise, with at least 50% ownership or demonstrable operational control. Passive investment in someone else's business does not qualify.

Item	Rule or deadline
Minimum investment	no fixed amount; proportionality test
Ownership or control	at least 50% or operational control
Marginality	more than a minimal living, within 5 years at the latest
Application fee (MRV fee, E category)	$315 per person, since 30 May 2023
Processing time, consulate Amsterdam	12 weeks or more after a complete file
Passport returned after the interview	3 to 4 business days
Visa validity for Dutch citizens	at most 5 years, at the consul's discretion
Stay per admission	initially at most 2 years, extensions of up to 2 years each, unlimited
Family	spouse and unmarried children under 21

How does the application run from the Netherlands?

Unlike the employer routes, an E-2 application from the Netherlands does not go through a petition (a formal request) at USCIS, the American immigration service. You may not file Form I-129 while outside the US.

You apply directly at the consulate in Amsterdam. You send:

• a DS-160, the application form, for yourself and for each accompanying family member;
• payment of the application fee;
• your complete business file by e-mail, as seven PDF files.

Within two days the consulate confirms receipt. After that, do not ask about the status until the average processing time of twelve weeks or more has passed.

Once the file has been reviewed, you are invited to an interview. Everyone aged fourteen and older appears in person; younger children are included in the appointment. If the visa is approved, your passport comes back by registered post three to four business days later.