The visa is for a foreign company or individual who wishes to come to the U.S. to work in the areas of trade or investment. Application is made at a U.S. consulate. Most consulates currently process Es in 24 to 48 hours, although other consulates could take a few days.
Initial validity is for two years.
An E-1 is a national of a country with which the U.S. has a treaty of friendship, commerce, and navigation who is coming to the U.S. to engage in substantial trade between the U.S. and the alien's country of nationality. Substantial investment is one in which personal funds or assets are put at risk in a real operating enterprise which generates services or goods. You must show that you are able to direct and develop the enterprise by having control over the business. You must also show that the investment is not your main source of income or that the proceeds from the investment are significantly greater than a subsistence income.