EB5 Visa

A crucial part of obtaining an EB-5 visa is disclosing the source of funds (7 years of tax returns). Gifting of funds to the applicant may only be from parents, siblings and spouses (immediate family members).

The type of investment project is perhaps the most important decision an applicant must make, as the enterprise choice will no doubt affect whether or not the application is approved and the degree to which financial success is achieved.

There are a wide range of investment options that have the potential to meet USCIS conditions for approval. When calculating the most suitable type of business to fund, potential investors must ask themselves:

“Do I want a larger return on my investment or am I investing primarily to meet the basic requirements for obtaining a green card?”

Acceptable EB-5 enterprises exist across a wide variety of fields and industries from medical facilities, manufacturing, agriculture and real estate development, to hotels, restaurants, casinos and stadiums.

An EB-5 investor can take one of two routes:

1. Direct Investment – invest in someone else’s company or open and operate your own company/franchise in the U.S.
2. Regional Center – public or private approved organizations that are involved with economic growth and tend to be most useful for investors who do not intend to invest directly and take a day-to-day role in the business.

For potential investors, putting large sums of money at risk in a foreign economy and having citizenship determined by the long-term business success as well as the ability to create at least 10 U.S. jobs is a high-stakes decision that requires due diligence.

It is best to seek advice from an EB-5 network of attorney/broker-dealers that can provide immigration legal advice combined with investment advice based on comprehensive insight into Regional Centers, developers, and projects to ensure proper assessment of options and particular issues that applicants may face to create a strategy for meeting USCIS requirements.

The approval of the I-526 petition takes on average 12-14 months. Once USCIS approves the investor’s Green Card, it is conditional for a period of 30 months (two and a half years).

Conditional Green Card status confers the same rights as the permanent (unconditional) Green Card.

Expedited I-526 Processing project is an option for investors to get ahead of the Backlog/Retrogression.

There are a wide range of investment options that have the potential to meet USCIS conditions for approval. When calculating the most suitable type of business to fund, potential investors must ask themselves:

“Do I want a larger return on my investment or am I investing primarily to meet the basic requirements for obtaining a green card?”

The type of investment project is perhaps the most important decision an applicant must make, as the enterprise choice and associated risks will no doubt affect whether or not the application is approved and the degree to which financial success is achieved.

Acceptable EB-5 enterprises exist across a wide variety of fields and industries from medical facilities, manufacturing, agriculture and real estate development, to hotels, restaurants, casinos and stadiums.

For potential investors, putting large sums of money at-risk in a foreign economy and having citizenship determined by the long-term business success as well as the ability to create at least 10 U.S. jobs is a high-stakes decision that requires due diligence.

It is best to seek advice from an EB-5 network of attorney/broker-dealers that can provide immigration legal advice combined with investment advice based on comprehensive insight into Regional Centers, developers, and projects to ensure proper assessment of options and particular issues that applicants may face to create a strategy for meeting USCIS requirements.

A major benefit of obtaining an EB5 visa is that even on under the conditional permanent residency that is initially granted, the holder may travel freely both within and outside the U.S.

However, it is imperative to maintain permanent residency and a prolonged absence (6 months or more) may interrupt the naturalization process.

USCIS relaxed the requirements together with an increase in consistency of approving EB5 applications, the success rate ultimately depends on the applicant’s ability to meet all of the criteria.

For potential investors, putting large sums of money at risk in a foreign economy and having citizenship determined by the long-term business success as well as the ability to create at least 10 U.S. jobs is a high-stakes decision that requires due diligence.

The type of investment project is perhaps the most important decision an applicant must make, as the enterprise choice will no doubt affect whether or not the application is approved and the degree to which financial success is achieved.

There are a wide range of investment options that have the potential to meet USCIS conditions for approval. When calculating the most suitable type of business to fund, potential investors must ask themselves, “Do I want a larger return on my investment or am I investing primarily to meet the basic requirements for obtaining a green card?”

Acceptable EB-5 enterprises exist across a wide variety of fields and industries from medical facilities, manufacturing, agriculture and real estate development, to hotels, restaurants, casinos and stadiums.

With so much riding on the choice of commercial entity, it is imperative that foreign investors asses the risks associated with the type of business and the strategy for meeting USCIS requirements, such as job creation.

Giving proper consideration to the type of investment can be a daunting task, especially for those without a background in business, economics or a specific industry.

Good question! The Eb5 visa has become much more popular in recent years for three reasons:

1. The Eb5 visa is a fast-track to permanent residency for the investor AND his/her immediate family, including children under the age of 21.
2. The USCIS relaxed the requirements together with an increase in consistency of approving EB5 applications.
3. The applicant is not required to be highly involved in the application process and can bypass the green card backlog.
   However, EB5 visas are not quite as “famous” due to the amount of money required for investment and the duration of time the investment must be held at risk.

So what happens is people with specialized knowledge and/or an advanced degree who secure employment in the U.S. will opt to take their chances at obtaining an H1-B visa. If granted, they can come and work in the U.S. and if they want to stay will find another avenue to permanent residency.

The EB-5 visa program is set to expire at the end of September 2018, but experts predict it will be extended through December 2018, when Congress is expected to raise the minimum investment amount of $500,000 to $1.35 million and the $1 million investment to $1.8 million in order to account for inflation over the past 28 years. So it looks like there is more time for investors to obtain green cards and create jobs for Americans at the lower investment rate.