Question on employment section of the I 130. Selfemployed or unemployed

[haas2121]

Hello All,
I want to say thanks for the help this forum has given myself and my wife. The information here is vital for people in the process of bringing there spouse or family to the usa.
My question that is causing me some concern is in regards to the employment section.
I came to china 5 years ago in attempt to start my own company in the usa doing business with China. So basically I spent years abroad and only spent money on a business that earned zero income at any point. We had a us based delaware company for few years but zero income. I have tried a few other startups and now own a business in florida with another partner but that just recently started so has no income. So basically in five years I earned zero. Not concerned about i 864 as I own properties in the us with no debt and have co sponsor if needed.
My concern here is with stage 1 the I 130. Should I put unemployed for five years, self employed, or employed that I worked for the company I owned which paid zero salary and zero income. I feel self employed , but no income. So my guess is self employed but I need the help of you experts.
thanks much
C.

[bobm445]

I would go with the self employed. You have assets so you did not rely on your work for income but just tried to get the company off the ground. Lots of self employed people throw money at their companies to keep them afloat. some times it works sometimes it does not.