In EB-1C, does owning a franchise with 2 employees make me an ‘executive’?

Not automatically. In EB-1C, what defines the profile of an executive or manager is not business ownership or the number of employees, but the substance of your responsibilities. Owning a franchise with two employees, on its own, does not demonstrate that level of activity.

The category seeks someone who, in a prior role, had real authority to set direction and lead the organization at a strategic level — not merely to run day-to-day operations. This typically involves:

• Authority to set policies and make decisions that are significant to the business.
• Broad management, overseeing departments, functions, or an organized structure.
• Strategic responsibility, beyond operational tasks.

In small structures, these roles can exist, but they become harder to establish when the owner also handles operational duties. What matters is being able to document that your role was genuinely managerial or executive, given the complexity of the business and how it is organized.

Since each case is evaluated individually, it is worth reviewing the updated requirements and discussing with a specialist whether your actual responsibilities support this profile.

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Victoria Harper

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As a journalist and lead editor at Visto n’ Visa, Victoria helps ensure that immigration topics are covered in a clear, trustworthy, and easy-to-understand way. Her focus is on delivering useful, human, and relevant content for people exploring new paths abroad.