Rather than a generic business plan template, here's the actual section-by-section structure a complete E-2 plan should follow, with what each section needs to accomplish and roughly how much space it deserves.
Executive Summary (600-800 words)
Summarizes the investor, the investment, the business, and explicitly addresses substantiality, non-marginality, and active direction up front — this is the reviewing officer's first impression and needs to be immediately compelling.
1. The Investor & Source of Funds
Background, nationality/treaty basis, and the lawful source of investment funds, with a clear statement that funds are committed and at risk (or the specific timeline for them to become so).
2. Business Description & US Entity Structure
The business concept, legal entity type and justification, ownership structure, and registered location.
3. Investment Breakdown
An itemized table: category, amount, timing, and evidence type needed — reconciling exactly to the figure stated in the executive summary.
4. Market Analysis
Industry overview specific to your business and location, with realistic TAM/SAM/SOM reasoning and competitive landscape — not generic industry statistics.
5. Marketing & Operations Plan
How the business will acquire customers and operate day-to-day — the systems and processes that make this a real business.
6. Personnel Plan — Five-Year Hiring Table
The centerpiece of the non-marginality argument: position titles, timing, and salaries over five years, reconciling to your financials.
7. Five-Year Financial Projections
Revenue, costs, and profit tied directly to your hiring plan and market analysis, with every assumption stated explicitly.
8. Non-Marginality Statement
A dedicated argument, referencing your financials and hiring table, for why this business exceeds subsistence-level income.
9. The Investor's Role
Your specific day-to-day executive role, decision-making authority, and time commitment.
10. Conclusion
Ties substantiality, non-marginality, job creation, and active direction into a closing argument.
A complete plan built to this structure typically runs 35-45 pages. Every section should reconcile numerically with every other — this is a draft for your attorney's review, not a legal filing, and no outcome is ever guaranteed.