Price the liquidation itself, not only the investment: valuation or broker costs, transfer restrictions, tax on any gain, currency conversion and timing risk. Then separate business spending from immigration-preparation fees, and ask for review of how a particular professional cost is actually treated. No fee produces a guaranteed approval or return.
Ask what shrinks between sale and deployment
Calculate available proceeds after charges actually deducted, without subtracting taxes or professional fees twice when paid elsewhere. If a bridge loan supplements the amount, examine repayment liability, pledged assets, and the payment path. Treatment depends on actual terms, not the label 'personal loan' or 'business debt'.
The price of a business and the capital counted toward the investment are rarely the same figure. A purchase price can carry goodwill payable later, a holdback released after a warranty period and an earn-out contingent on results nobody has produced yet, none of which is money placed at risk today. Build the budget from the payment schedule instead: what has been paid, what is owing on fixed dates, and what turns on a future event.
Vendor financing repays a close look, since a note secured only against the business assets exposes less of the investor’s own capital than the price suggests. Hypothetical example: a buyer acquires a produce distribution business with a substantial earn-out tied to two seasons of results, and the choice that follows is to restructure the terms or accept a qualifying figure smaller than the headline price.