Turkey Citizenship & US E1, E2 Visa

Turkish nationals eligible to apply for the US E1 & E2 Visas

Dr. Antoine Saliba Haig | 07 4月 2022

Turkey Citizenship and US visa

Investors and entrepreneurs and their families seeking to enter the United States of America must either be nationals of a country with whom the US has signed a Visa Waiver Agreement e.g. Malta, or else apply under a particular category of a tourist or business visas. To encourage trade and investment, the US has also set up entrepreneur visa and investor visa routes, namely the E1 and E2 visas intended for individuals interested to trade with or invest in the US. Such categories of visas are however available only for nationals of Treaty Countries, that is countries with an E1 or an E2 Visa Agreement.

US Treaty Countries

The term Treaty Countries refers to countries with whom the United States of America has signed a Treaty in relation to the E1 and E2 visas. Thus in order to apply for an E1 or E2 visa, an individual must be a citizen of a Treaty Country. This means that not every investor is eligible to apply for such visas since one must be a citizen of a treaty country in order to qualify. Investors not originating from Treaty countries have the option to apply for citizenship of countries who have signed an agreement with the US. There are two Treaty countries which provide a legal basis for citizenship to be acquired through investment and these include Grenada and Turkey. Whilst Grenada is a Treaty Country only for the E2 Visa Programme, Turkey is a Treaty country for both the E1 and the E2 Visa Programmes.

US E1 Visa and Turkish Citizenship by Investment

Turkey has signed the US E1 visa agreement with the US on the 15th February 1933. The US E1 visa is primarily available for nationals of Treaty countries who are interested in doing international trade between their country of nationality and the US. The trade should be substantial and continuous and more than 50% of the international trade should be made between the US and the Treaty Country. The trade can be either in the form of physical goods, transportation or services. This category of visa was created to facilitate international trade between the US and countries which have signed a treaty of commerce. Such visa is issued to owners and employees of companies and renewed only when the applicant and the company continue to satisfy the visa requirements. 

US E2 VIsa and Turkish Citizenship by Investment

Turkey has signed the US E2 visa agreement with the US on the 18th May 1990. Whilst the E1 visa is available for traders, the US E2 visa is available for individuals looking to establish or invest in an existing business in the US. The E2 Visa is a non-immigrant visa which allows investors the right to enter and work in the US based on the investment they make. The investment must be substantial and invest in a real operating enterprise. The spouse of the main applicant, their children up to the age of 21 and employees may also be eligible to reside in the US.

Individuals who are interested in applying for the US E1 or E2 visa who are nationals of non-Treaty countries can therefore obtain citizenship by investment in Turkey or Grenada to become eligible to trade or invest in the US.

Please contact us for more details on the Turkish citizenship by investment programme.


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关键联系人

Dr Priscilla Mifsud Parker

Advocate, Tax Consultant, Licenced Agent, Malta

+356 22056422

Dr Antoine Saliba Haig

Advocate, Malta

+356 22056446

Claudia Cilia Buhagiar

Senior Private Client Advisor  

+356 22056124

Julia Tirazona

Lawyer

+356 2205 6409

Pauline Gouder

Senior Residency & Citizenship Executive

+356 22056105

Roberta Anastasi

Senior Private Clients Advisor

+356 22056105

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