A quotation shows a proposed cost, not necessarily capital already committed and at risk. Examine what has actually been paid or irrevocably committed.
Label each stage accurately
Keep quotes, signed orders, deposits and final payments separate. Record refund rights and conditions that remain. The E-2 assessment considers the actual commitment in the real enterprise; adding all projected purchases together can overstate what the evidence currently establishes.
An operating company supplies records that a startup must construct, but the requirements are identical: treaty nationality, substantial at-risk capital, a genuine commercial enterprise, the investor's ability to direct it, and more than marginal capacity. A useful first review produces a condition-by-condition record: proof of Canadian nationality, the ownership ledger, the transfer trail for money or assets, and records showing that the business is operating beyond the family’s personal support. The reviewer looks at whether treaty nationals hold at least 50 percent of the enterprise, whether the applicant is a treaty national, and whether that individual will actually develop and direct the business through ownership, a managerial position, or another documented control device. An operating company with staff, premises and lawful unregulated revenue tells a different story from a shell awaiting approval, and the difference shows in records nobody has to characterize: bank statements, payroll runs, supply contracts, a signed lease.