IN THIS GUIDE · An owner who intends to hire a manager and stay in Canada
Start with the E-2 eligibility and application overview
Develop and direct is about position and about presence
The classification requires the investor to be in a position to develop and direct the enterprise, which is ordinarily shown by ownership of at least half the business or by operational control through a managerial position or other device. Two things follow for Marta. The first is structural: her ownership and control need to be recorded in the governing documents rather than assumed. The second is practical: the status exists so that a treaty investor can come to the United States to develop and direct the business, and a plan built around quarterly visits sits uneasily with that purpose. Treat the funds trail as a business workstream. For every transfer, identify its source document, receiving account and commercial purpose; doing so early exposes gaps while records are still easy to obtain.
A hired manager is not a problem; delegating the direction is
Businesses of any size employ managers, and doing so does not disqualify anyone. The distinction is between an owner who directs the enterprise and employs a manager to execute, and an owner who has handed over direction entirely and holds an investment. If Marta intends the latter, the plan begins to resemble a passive holding, which is a different thing from the operating role the classification describes. The governing documents, the manager's employment terms and the reporting arrangements together show which of the two is really happening. Substantiality is evaluated in relation to the cost of the enterprise, so a budget should distinguish acquisition price, equipment, inventory, start-up expenditure and working capital. That comparison is more useful than searching for a universal minimum amount.
The other conditions do not bend to accommodate the structure
Treaty nationality applies to Marta and, through its ownership, to the enterprise. The funds must be irrevocably committed and genuinely at risk, substantial in relation to the total cost of the enterprise, and lawfully sourced with a documented path. The business must be real, active and operating and must not be marginal. And the classification is a nonimmigrant one, granting no direct path to permanent residence, which matters for anyone planning a permanent relocation rather than an investment managed from elsewhere. The operating plan should name the investor's decisions, authority and expected presence. A manager may perform many tasks, but the plan must still show that the investor directs the enterprise rather than holds a passive interest.
Decide what the family actually wants before designing the structure
Marta's real decision is not a legal one. If she wants to keep the Springwater operation and add an American business she visits, she should ask counsel what routes, if any, suit an investment held rather than operated, and accept that the answer may be none of the work-authorizing categories. If she is prepared to move and run the American business, the structure can be designed around that from the beginning. Designing a structure before answering that question is what produces plans that have to be unwound later. Commercial commitments should be real but sensibly protected where possible. A lease, purchase terms and supplier invoices can demonstrate that the enterprise is more than an intention, while contingency clauses may manage the consequence of a refusal.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.