On August 15, 1955, the United States and Iran signed the Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations, and and Consular Rights which entered into force on June 16, 1957 and thus qualified Iran as a treaty country for purposes of E-1 Treaty Trader visas and E-2 Treaty Investor visas. Yesterday, on October 3, 2018, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the United States is terminating the treaty which would in turn eliminate E-1 Treaty Trader visas and E-2 Treaty Investor visas for Iranians.
That being said, under Article XXIII, Section 3, of the Treaty of Amity, it states: “Either High Contracting Party may, by giving one year’s written notice to the other High Contracting Party, terminate the present Treaty at the end of the initial ten-year period or at any time thereafter.” This means that the United States would have to submit a written notice one year in advance of termination, and in turn, this could mean that E-1/E-2 visas for Iranians shall remain available for one year after such written notice is given.
However, it remains to be seen if the United States will honor this termination provision, if and when it has submitted such written notice, and what direct impact there will be on Iranians who currently hold E-1/E-2 visas.