B-5 Investor Visa

The B-5 visa is issued to a qualifying organization which meets the following regulatory requirements:

1. “Nationality” – For B-5 purposes, the majority (50%) of the issued shares must be held by nationals of the US. 
2. “The Investment” – You must have invested or be actively in the process of investing, which requires that you:

Show legitimate “Possession and Control of the Funds” – The investor must own and control the capital invested in the business, and be able to identify the legal source of the funds. The funds may come from inter alia, a business, family, property owned by the investor, inheritance, savings and gifts. There are specific criteria for the use of loans as part of the initial investment.

All funds invested are “At Risk” & Irrevocably Committed” – The B-5 investor must establish that funds have already been invested, or, that he/she is actively in the process of investing in the Israeli company. The investor must demonstrate that the capital has been irrevocably committed to the proposed B-5 business to the point of no return. The investment must not be “speculative” or unsubstantiated.

The investment must be “Substantial” – There is no set monetary minimum as to how much capital must be invested. Instead, the investment must be enough to ensure, to a reasonable extent, that the business invested in is not speculative, but is, or soon will be, a successful enterprise as a result of sound business and financial judgment.

The permit is granted to non EU nationals, intending to stay and Work in Poland for the performance of work as a manager, specialist or a trainee employee, for the parent company, seated outside the territory of the EU Member States, the member countries of the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA) and the Swiss Confederation, for a period longer than 3 months.  

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Key requirement is prior employment of the assignee, within the same enterprise or the same group of companies:

Managers and specialists, prior employment contract should last 12 months.

trainee employees – prior employment contract should last 6 months.

​With this permit, the assignee may perform work in other EU countries for up to 30 days within 180 days per each EU member state, without the necessity to obtain a work permit in each EU country.

​The permit is valid for up to 3 years for managers and specialists and up to 1 year for trainees.

The investment must be:

• Substantial in relationship to the total cost of either purchasing an established business or establishing a new one.
  Sufficient to ensure the investor’s financial commitment to the successful operation of the business.
  Of a magnitude to support the likelihood that the investor will successfully develop and direct the business. The lower the cost of the business, the higher, proportionately, the investment must be to be considered substantial.
• Your Investment Cannot Be Marginal

A marginal enterprise is one that does not have the present or future capacity to generate more than enough income to provide a minimal living for the investor and his or her family. A new business might not be considered marginal even if it lacks the current capacity to generate income if it can be shown the business has the capacity to generate income within five years from the date that the investor’s E-2 classification begins.

• The Business Must Be Operational

In order for the company to receive B-5 2 status, it must be shown that the business is already in its “operational stage”, such as the production of goods or the actual provision of services has begun. As a rule, you cannot apply for a visa if the business is not ready to start business activities immediately upon receipt of the visa.

• You Must Be in a Position to “Develop & Direct” the Business

The investor may apply for B-5 status as the owner of the company or the owner may send key employees who qualify based upon nationality and hold the requisite skills to “develop and direct the enterprise”. An employee must meet the following eligibility requirements:

Be engaging in duties of an executive or supervisory nature; or
If employed in a lesser capacity, have special qualifications which make the employee’s services “essential” to the efficient operation of the business.

• There is no required investment amount.
• The investment may consist in part of borrowed funds.
• The B-5 Visa can be obtained by either purchasing an existing business or creating a new business in Israel.
• B-5 investors/employees can receive initial ability to enter and work in Israel for 2 years.
• There is no limitation as to the number of extensions, as long as the company continues to meet the requirements of the visa.
• No prior employment with the company is required.
• Spouses may obtain work authorization for employment in Israel.

Normally, a petition letter for the company, the employee and supporting documentation is submitted to the Consulate by registered mail. Once the file is reviewed the B-5 visa applicant will be invited to an interview. 

The applicant must provide a petition letter and additional required documents at the time of visa interview.