The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program (“EB-5 Program”) is a U.S. system that offers the opportunity for foreign investors to obtain U.S. lawful permanent resident status (aka Green Card) for themselves and their immediate families. The EB-5 Program provides a pathway to a permanent green card and eventually citizenship for qualified immigrant investors.
The U.S. Congress created the EB-5 category in the Immigration Act of 1990 to create jobs for American workers by attracting foreign capital investment to the U.S. The investor is allowed to engage in new or existing commercial enterprise anywhere in the US by investing a certain amount in a new commercial enterprise that will benefit the U.S. economy.
Currently, the EB-5 investor must contribute a minimum amount of US$900K in a TEA or $1.8M in non-TEA to a new commercial enterprise in the U.S. generating at least ten (10) full-time jobs with a lawful source of funds. As of March 15, 2022, the EB-5 investors in the United States may file concurrently their I-485 Adjustment of Status application. This legislation offers the EB-5 investors the opportunity to get their EAD card and Advance Parole to travel pending the approval of their I-526 green card petition which is taking 18-24 months. For EB-5 investment in TEA or rural areas, the priority date is current for all countries. As such, this is a great time to get your green card faster under the EB-5 Program, especially, for countries with a long backlog, like China and India.
Under the EB-5 Program, your investment must meet all the requirements of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regulations, including the (i) investment must be at risk and (ii) creation of at least 10 full-time jobs for each investor. The EB-5 Program is very complex with many challenges to obtaining your green card. One of the major challenges we see is the source of funds documentation for the EB-5 investors, in addition to performing due diligence on EB-5 projects. The EB-5 Program remains a great, practical, and fast venue for immigration to the U.S. It is important to see the advice of a qualified EB-5 lawyer, not only for the preparation of the immigration paperwork, but in the investment of the underlying U.S. business entity, or the purchase of an already existing U.S. business.
