For a wide class of two-body energy operators h(k) on the three-dimensional lattice Z 3 , k being the two-particle quasi-momentum, we prove that if the following two assumptions (i) and (ii) are satisfied, then for all nontrivial values k, k = 0, the discrete spectrum of h(k) below its threshold is non-empty. The assumptions are: (i) the twoparticle Hamiltonian h(0) corresponding to the zero value of the quasi-momentum has either an eigenvalue or a virtual level at the bottom of its essential spectrum and (ii) the oneparticle free Hamiltonians in the coordinate representation generate positivity preserving semi-groups.