Read the general investor planning overview
Leased equipment sits differently in an E-2 file than equipment bought outright. Set out three things separately: what has already been paid, what the lease binds the business to pay or do, and what remains the property of the lessor. Then ask how each is treated in assessing a substantial, at-risk and committed investment. The market value of a machine you rent is not automatically an investment figure.
Set out the lease exactly as written
Work from the signed agreement, not a summary or a quotation. Record the parties and their exact legal names, the term, the payments already made, the remaining obligations, any deposit or prepaid rent, any personal guarantee, the termination and default provisions, and whether a purchase option exists and on what terms. Note who owns the equipment during the term and at its end. Where the lessee is a related company rather than the operating enterprise, flag that difference rather than smoothing it over, because it changes who has committed what.
Separate amounts paid, obligations committed and assets owned
Build three columns. The first holds amounts already spent irrevocably. The second holds obligations that are legally binding but not yet paid. The third holds assets the enterprise owns. Do not merge them into a single headline number. Substantiality is assessed in relation to the particular enterprise, and there is no fixed universal minimum that a leasing arrangement can be measured against. Ask the reviewer how the lease obligations in your documents are treated on these facts, rather than assuming that committed rent either counts in full or counts for nothing.
Explain the operating reason and keep the funds trail intact
Hypothetical example: an applicant in Boisbriand leases production equipment instead of buying it, to preserve working capital for staffing and inventory. Say so, and show where the preserved capital actually went, with a dated path from a lawful source to the enterprise. The enterprise must still be a real, operating and non-marginal business that the investor will develop and direct, so describe customers, delivery obligations and decision-making. Keep the commercial judgement about leasing versus buying separate from the immigration analysis; an immigration assessment is not a substitute for independent financial advice on the leasing decision.
What else is on your mind?
Is there one minimum investment that guarantees E-2 eligibility?Is holding money or owning an asset enough for E-2?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.