Landscaping & Maintenance Services – Source of Funds Challenges

Citizenship: Canada

Total Investment: $315,000 (approx.)

Total Working Capital: $65,000 (approx.)

This case demonstrated just how crucial it is to have clear and organized documentation for the source of funds when applying for an E-2 visa. Even though we were able to overcome the challenges by providing detailed explanations and using alternative proof, the process would have been much smoother if the records had been maintained from the beginning.

Challenge:

One of our clients purchased an existing lawn maintenance and landscaping services business. His main challenge was providing the sources of the funds used for the investment, as he had three different sources that came at different times over a period of 3 to 4 years.

The three sources of funds were:

1. Savings, but there were no clear records or statements showing where the money had been kept.
2. Proceeds from the sale of a property, which occurred a few years before the investment.
3. The sale of a vehicle. This source was well-documented but only represented 30% of the total investment.

The main hurdle was providing complete documentation for the first two sources. Our client didn’t have the full paperwork for the sale of the property and could not prove exactly how the savings had been stored over the years. Only sale of the vehicle was fully documented, but it didn’t cover the entire investment.

Strategy:

To overcome these challenges, we provided the client with clear guidance and alternative proofs to support 100% of the fund sources.

For the savings, were able to show that the money was earned legally. We explained in detail how and where the money came from and provided proof of the movement of funds between different accounts.

For the property sale, even though our client couldn’t provide all the paperwork, we worked with what we had. We explained how much money our client received from the sale, including all fees that were deducted. While not every document was available, we provided enough information to clearly show where the money came from.

Results:

Our client’s E-2 visa application was approved without any complications. Despite the challenges with the documentation, the careful, organized approach we took helped to clearly demonstrate the source of funds. The immigration officer was satisfied with the detailed explanations of how the funds were earned and moved, as well as the viability of the business under out client’s leadership.

**Did you know? Our firm provides Guaranteed Support for Request for Evidence (RFE) responses, no matter how complex or lengthy the RFE issued by USCIS. There are no additional attorney’s fees for our E-2 clients who receive RFEs. Click here for details.

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To protect our clients' privacy, names of individuals and businesses have been omitted. In some cases, we may also alter or generalize certain details to further safeguard their confidentiality.