IN THIS GUIDE · A fifty-fifty partnership, and what it does to nationality and control
Start with the E-2 eligibility and application overview
The enterprise itself has a nationality
It is not enough that the applicants are Canadian citizens. The business must be at least fifty per cent owned by nationals of the treaty country, and that is measured by looking through to the ultimate individual owners rather than stopping at a holding company. A structure where two Canadians hold half and an American holds half sits exactly on the line, so how the shares are recorded, whether any are held in trust, and what happens to unissued shares all matter. Get this analysed before the company is formed.
Control is a separate question from ownership
Development and direction ordinarily requires at least fifty per cent ownership or operational control, and an even split leaves neither side able to outvote the other. That deadlock can be resolved by agreement — a casting vote, a managing-director appointment, a shareholders' agreement allocating operational authority — but it has to be resolved in a document, not in an understanding between friends. Draft that agreement with the requirement in mind and have it reviewed by counsel on both sides.
Starting from nothing changes what must exist before applying
A business bought as a going concern is already real and operating. One started from scratch is not, so the application should follow the establishment: premises or a yard secured, equipment purchased, licences and bonding obtained, insurance in place, the first employees engaged and work being taken in. Keep every receipt, contract and permit as it is obtained, because that sequence is what demonstrates both the operating enterprise and the irrevocable commitment of funds.
Build the marginality answer from committed work
The enterprise must have the present or future capacity to generate more than a minimal living for the investors and their families, or to make a significant economic contribution. For a new contracting company that means showing committed work: signed contracts, letters of intent, tendered bids, the partner's existing customer relationships and the crew size those imply. Projections without evidence behind them are the weakest part of most new-venture files and are worth the effort to support properly.
Show qualifying capital in the buyer’s actual enterprise
The enterprise must meet the applicable non-marginality analysis; substantiality is assessed against the actual cost of purchasing or establishing it, without a universal minimum. E-2 review looks at the enterprise the investor will own and direct, its customers, assets and expenses, not the seller's whole history. Working capital and visa-contingent escrow require genuine-term review, while enterprise-secured debt differs from qualifying personal financing; family funding does not waive these conditions. Enterprise-asset security excludes the debt even when personal collateral also supports it; borrowing secured solely by non-enterprise personal assets must be assessed on its real terms.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.