IN THIS GUIDE · Fixing a commercial lease signed by the wrong entity before calling the premises secured
Start with the E-2 eligibility and application overview
Establish who signed and who will trade
Read the lease's first page and signature block against your corporate records. A hypothetical Oka reader might find the lease names a numbered holding company, a personal name, or an entity formed in the wrong state, while the operating company that will employ staff and serve customers is different. Write down the legal names, formation dates, and who has actually paid rent and deposits so far. The signed lease, corporate formation record, and payment trail settle different facts, so review them together instead of treating a business name on one page as conclusive. Decide which entity needs the right to occupy before operations begin.
Choose a repair route with the landlord
Depending on the actual contract and applicable law, options may include assignment, an authorized sublease, amendment or a new lease. Determine what consent is required and who has authority to grant access. A guarantee alone does not necessarily establish occupancy rights. Have commercial counsel resolve conflicting obligations and explain the actual arrangement before representing it in the immigration file. Obtain the landlord's written position before presenting any repair as complete. The practical choice is whether an amendment can be executed on time or whether the operating plan needs premises supported by a different enforceable arrangement.
Do not describe the premises as secured too early
Establish the enterprise’s enforceable access through the actual lease or other lawful arrangement; direct tenancy is not universally required. Trace rent, deposits and improvement payments to the actual payer and purpose. Escrow, refund and revocation conditions still need fact-specific investment review. A coherent occupancy chain and a documented funding trail address different questions, so preserve evidence of both. Separate money already exposed to the enterprise from money that remains freely recoverable, and keep the transfer records with the governing contract. That sequence shows what is committed without pretending that a contingent payment has already become business capital.
Keep entity facts consistent with the treaty case
Map the operating company, any holding company and the rights linking them, then confirm the qualifying enterprise’s ownership and the investor’s genuine development and direction. Treaty eligibility follows citizenship, not an Oka address; Canadian citizens generally need an E visa. Do not restructure the entities merely to make names match without reviewing commercial, tax and immigration consequences. Review ownership citizenship, operational authority, and the business plan as separate decisions. A change that fixes occupancy can still alter nationality or control facts, so preserve the pre-change and post-change records.
Present expansion as capacity, not as fact
The business must be real and active, producing goods or services for profit, and must have the present or future capacity to generate more than a minimal living for the investor and family, or to make a significant economic contribution.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.