2. Evidence that the Applicant is a ‘Qualified Entrepreneur’

To apply as a founder you must show that you are qualified as an ‘Entrepreneur’. This requires showing that you are “well-positioned to advance the entity's business.” Proving this comes down to a showing that as a founder: 

1. You possess at least a 10% interest in the entity at the time of adjudication of the initial 2.5-year grant of parole (I-941 application), and that you still possesses at least a 5 percent ownership interest in the start-up entity at the time of adjudication of a subsequent period of re-parole (the second allowable period of 2.5 years); and 

2. You have an ‘active and central’ role in the operations in a manner that you impact the future growth of the entity. This can be shown through specific skills, experiences, knowledge that clearly will help the entity in growing the business in the U.S. More on this here.

As an important note about ownership, the rules, therefore, do take into account that equity stakes may decrease over time and for that reason do allow entrepreneurs to reduce his or her ownership interest in the start-up entity as time goes on. This is one of the examples of how this rule is lightyears ahead of existing non-immigrant visa options such as the E2, L1, O1, and others which are simply not well suited in many cases for startup founders and entrepreneurs. It is however important to keep in mind that at all times the entrepreneur must maintain at least a five (5) percent ownership stake in the entity to abide by the rules. Also, a 5% equity stake must be shown during the application for the second 2.5 year period of parole, also known as the re-parole process. 

3. A Substantial Potential for Growth Evidenced through Significant U.S. Capital Investment or Government Funding

This criterion is aimed at trying to verify that a startup indeed has a realistic and reasonable chance of delivering on the goal of substantially benefiting the U.S. through rapid growth and job creation. The rules lay out three different methods by which this can be proven. The first two, specifically detailed milestones, include showing that the startup received, within 18 months immediately preceding the filing of an I-941 application, an investment of $250,000 from qualified investors, or $100,000 through one or more qualified government awards or grants. Then there is a third option by which a founder can show that the startup has partially reached these investment thresholds and also has other reliable evidence of the significant benefit that the U.S. will derive by the startup. More details can be found here but in essence the government would be looking to see the additional social value of the business, the local and national scope of the product or service, the number of users of the product or service, any revenue generation to date, whether there is any other non-parole rule qualifying investment capital, and more.

Please read our in-depth article breaking down the rule, read our FAQs, and watch our video series on the Entrepreneur Parole to get into the nuanced details.

Articles for Entrepreneurs and Startups