Hi and thank you for visiting the e2visalab.com website. My name is Arzu Jamilova, and I live in Seattle, Washington with my husband and three kids. We moved to the United States in 2016 by starting a business and getting an E-2 visa. I applied as the principal visa applicant and, later in 2018, I was able to successfully renew it. I would like to share useful information that I learned when going through this process and help you prepare your E-2 visa application without an immigration attorney.
Before I moved to the United States I lived in Baku, Azerbaijan and managed my own recruiting business and provided recruiting services to technology companies. Prior to starting my business, I held an HR leadership role at Azerfon which was one of the major wireless communication companies in Azerbaijan. I met and married my husband Ayaz Jamilov in 2003. We both worked for another telecom company back then. We have three kids: two sons and a daughter.
Azerbaijan has an oil and gas centric economy. Career opportunities in Azerbaijan are limited for those who is specialized in technology industry including me and my husband. The aspiration to continue our careers in technology industry encouraged us to choose America for our business immigration.
Seattle – the city where we reside now – is the second technological center of the United States after Silicon Valley. Major technology companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Expedia, T-Mobile have their headquarters in Seattle. Boeing, Google, and Facebook have their offices here too. These companies typically have the highest growth rate and constantly need to hire more people. I assumed that I would grow my recruiting business in this area quickly by helping these companies recruit software developers, engineers, and architects.
Together with my husband we studied the E-2 visa requirements and application process. Preparing and submitting the application took several months. We also had to learn about how to start and grow business in the United States. Our initial E-2 visa was approved by the Consulate Section of the Embassy of the United States of America in Baku, Azerbaijan for 2 years in 2016. Later in 2018 we got the visa extended for another 2 years by filing an extension through USCIS. There was no need to travel back to Azerbaijan for the renewal. We were able to renew it being in America. My husband and 3 kids were granted E-2 visas as my dependents. With dependent visas my husband was eligible to work, and the kids were eligible to study in the United States until they turn 21.
We learned a lot during this process and want to share our knowledge with you and help you live your American dream.