Expect duplicate living costs — housing in both countries, flights, and possibly two vehicles — alongside the business capital, which is what the E-2 analysis examines. Immigration preparation fees and later dependent applications are separate again. Government charges change, so confirm current amounts at the time of each step rather than relying on a quoted figure.
Keep personal spending out of the investment figure
Rent for the family apartment, airfare and school fees are household expenses, not enterprise capital, even when they are unavoidable. Business outlays such as premises, equipment and inventory belong in the investment analysis, and professional charges deserve individual review rather than a blanket inclusion or exclusion. If borrowing funds part of the purchase, note what secures the loan, since collateral affects whether that money is treated as capital at risk.
One question settles most classification disputes in this budget: would the enterprise incur this cost if the family lived somewhere else? Premises, equipment, inventory and the wages of people who work in the business would still be incurred, and they belong in the investment analysis. An apartment, school fees and flights home would not, however necessary they feel.
Applying that test line by line reduces the ambiguous items to a short list worth actual advice, chiefly a vehicle used for both purposes and professional charges spanning the business and the immigration matter. Where a cost is genuinely mixed, record the basis on which it was split at the time rather than reconstructing a rationale later.