International Law - 2/12 - boyerlawfirmblog.com

A Closer Look: The E2 Investor Visa

An E2 investor visa is just one of the many ways to legally live and work in the United States. An an E2 treaty visa requires individuals to either invest in an existing U.S. business or create a start-up.

If you are coming to America to create a business, you will first need to apply for a B1 Visa. The application for this visa includes a letter of explanation, various documents, and an interview with the consulate in your home country.

The application process for the actual E-2 Investor visa is long and complex. Applicants must be citizens of a country that has a treaty of commerce with the U.S. and have a clear immigration business plan. It is important to explain how the evidence you submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in your application proves your eligibility.

The clearer your eligibility, the faster the USCIS can review and process your application. Thus, a qualified immigration attorney is crucial.

Family of E2 Treaty Investors and Employees

An E-2 treaty investor’s family may qualify for a separate visa. The spouses of E-2 treaty investors may apply to jobs and start working as soon as the E-2 application is submitted. Additionally, if a child is unmarried and under 21 years old, they may be included on a permanent resident application.

After getting an E2 Investor Visa, the real work begins. Treaty investors are granted an inital stay of two years and can request extentions. There are no limits on how many times you can renew this visa. Creating a profitable business in the United States requires significant investment, commitment and of course, a good business lawyer.

Boyer Law Firm assists clients with Investment, Family Petition, Employment and Temporary visas, as well as applying for citizenship. To learn more or contact us, please visit our website.

Tax considerations for business expansion

Tax planning is necessary to ensure your company is in compliance with regulations in all countries of operation. There are a number of strategies companies can use to deal with international taxation in a way that works best for them.

Companies should thoroughly research the foreign market they wish to enter. Next, choose the method of expansion and the type of entity that will be formed. If your U.S. company is buying a foreign target corporation, what type of acquisition will be optimal for both the buyer and seller?

Foreign Tax Credits and other considerations

Examples of tax considerations for business expansion include cross-border transaction laws, classifying income as foreign or domestic, or choosing to utilize a foreign flow-through entity.

Foreign tax credits offset U.S. taxes, meaning that your company won’t have to pay double taxes for operating in two countries. In other words, a company can subtract the income taxes it has paid to other countries from the amount they are taxed from the U.S. government. There are limitations and complications to the use of foreign tax credits, so planning for taxes and dividend repatriation is key.

If more than 50% of the corporation is held by voting stockholders or if any value is held by U.S. shareholders in the fiscal year, the corporation is classified as a controlled foreign corporation.

Moreover, the Interest-Charge Domestic International Sales Corporation (“IC-DISC”) are provisions in U. S. tax law that incentivizes exporting goods made in America. Manufacturers, producers, resellers, and exporters use IC-DISCs to to reduce their income tax liability.

In conclusion, the process of entering a foreign jurisdiction is complicated. It’s important to have a tax advisor that will balance global market trends with the goals of your company.

Disclaimer: This articles is purely for educational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice. If you are in need of legal advice or are uncertain as to your legal needs, please contact an attorney for consultation.

Sources & Further Reading:

http://www.thetaxadviser.com/issues/2014/dec/tax-clinic-01.html

http://klugtaxlaw.com/us-companies-expanding-foreign-markets-legal-tax-considerations/

EB-5 visa: a sure U.S. residency opportunity

With the recent immigration reforms on the government’s agenda, Green Cards aspirants around the world might want to reevaluation their immigration options to live their American dreams. Among these options is the EB-5 visa.

The EB-5 program was created in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy and as such, it represents a sure U.S. residency opportunity for the eligible applicants and their spouses and unmarried children under 21.

To be eligible for an EB-5 visa, the applicant needs to invest in a new commercial enterprise and plan to create or preserve at least 10 full-time employments for qualifying U.S. workers in the United States within two years upon approval of the EB-5.

The pros and cons of the EB-5 visa:

The main advantage of getting an EB-5 visa is that it enables the beneficiary to get immediately a residency permit in the United States upon approval of the visa application. This benefit is extended to the beneficiary’s spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21.

As the EB-5 visa is a form of investor visa, all potential investors are welcomed and make the outcome of their application more sure than any other visa.

However, the applicant must be very careful while choosing the existing EB-5 investment programs as they do not present all criteria to make it a safe investment. Boyer Law firm can review with you your investment program and check the feasibility of the project before assisting you in preparing the application.

Let us know if you have any question about the EB-5 visa or any immigration related matters. We would be happy to discuss them with you.

Notary Public vs. Civil Law Notary

Notary public vs. civil law notary: A civil law notary is distinct from a notary public. On the one hand, a Florida notary public requires very little training, payment of a small fee, and very few duties and responsibilities. On the other hand, a civil law notary requires extensive training, has a tremendous amount of responsibility, and owes a fiduciary duty to clients.

In Florida, one can become a notary public simply by taking an online course that usually takes a few hours to complete, paying a fee under $200, complete an application and submit the application through a bonding agency.

A civil law notary (aka “notaire”) must go through years of formal training much like an attorney. The education component alone requires five years of school. In addition, those who complete the 5-year degree program must then complete two full years of internships before being sworn in as an official Notaire.

A Florida notary public has the limited role of administering oaths, attesting to copies of certain documents, solemnizing marriage.

A civil law notary has the expansive role of drafting and preparing legal documents, authenticating documents and transactions, and advising clients in certain legal matters.

Civil law notaries are found in many civil law nations outside the United States. Most European nations and Latin American nations have civil law notaries. However, in Florida, there is the Florida Civil Law Notary appointment program for Florida Attorneys that practice international law and who have a need to authenticate an act or attest to the validity of a document.

Many international legal documents must go through the expensive process of being notarized by a civil law notary. Luckily, there are a few Florida attorneys who are a Florida civil law notary.

Attorney Francis Boyer of Boyer Law Firm is one such attorney. If you believe you need any document notarized by a civil law notary or a Florida public notary, contact Boyer Law Firm today for a free consultation and to schedule a notarization session.

The Hague Convention and Service of Process

Many of our clients desire to serve process abroad, for example to Europe, as part of an international legal dispute. The Hague Convention and service of process abroad are intertwined. Thus, to serve process abroad, our office follows the rules set forth in the Hague Convention of 15 November 1965 on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters (Hague Service Convention).

You can serve an individual or a company in a country that is a signatory to the Hague Service Convention, like France, in one of three ways.

1. The first way to send service of process under the Hague Convention

Under this option, you send the service from the U.S. to the Convention to France for service on a party in France. Under the law of France, the document must be sent to the French Central Authority, preferably in English with a translated copy in French. The Convention also requires an identifiable address of the person to be served, that the document is either a judicial or extrajudicial document, and that the document being served related to a civil or commercial matter (not a criminal matter in other words).

2. The second way to send process under the Hague Convention

The second way to send process under the Hague Convention is to send the document from the U.S. via a consular or diplomatic channel or to a “judicial officer, official or other competent person in the State of destination.” In France, for example, this would mean sending the document to a “hussier” (an official process server licensed by the French government. The Hussier must have his signature notarized by a U.S. consular officer, and there are fees set by the French government for both using the hussier and for the cost of having his signature notarized.

3. The third way to send process under the Hague Convention

The third and last alternative to serving process under the Hague Convention is to do a document directly to “an interested party and judicial officers, officials or other competent persons of the State of destination.”

If you would like to serve a party overseas or if you have any questions about an international legal disputes, contact our civil litigation attorneys today!