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EB-5 Investors Visa

You can obtain lawful permanent residency (Green Card) though an investment in the United States. Fifth Preference applicant must file an Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur, Form I-526, with USCIS. Labor certification is not required for Immigrant Investors. To qualify as an Immigrant Investor, a foreign citizen must invest between U.S. $500,000 and $1,000,000, depending on the unemployment rate in the geographical area, in a commercial enterprise in the United States which creates at least 10 new full-time jobs for U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or other lawful immigrants, not including the investor and his or her family.

Amount of Capital

The standard EB-5 Visa investment amount is USD$1,000,000. However in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA) which is defined as an area with an unemployment rate of 150% or more above the U.S. national average or in a rural area (defined as being within the boundary of a city or town with a population of 20,000 or less). the required investment is USD$500,000 for an established business.

Types of Capital

Investment in the EB-5 Visa program is flexible and can be made in the form of cash, cash equivalents, equipment, inventory or other tangible property.

Capital does not include loans made by the investor to the venture, however if the investor borrows the investment money it must be secured by assets owned by the investor, and the investor must be personally liable for the loan

The investor may receive a gift of funds, subject to payment of all required taxes by law have been paid.

Source of Capital

The USCIS is notified when the investment is made into the respective project. The current guidelines requires investment for a TEA at USD$500,000. Prospective investors are eligible to invest the required amount alone, create a qualifying business with other foreign investors and/or with a U.S. citizen or other people not seeking classification as a foreign investor. In these scenario, all persons seeking classification as a foreign investor must have invested the required USD$500,000 amount, however each investor can use the same employees to reach the required 10 new positions.

"At Risk"

The USCIS requires validation that all capital investments be classified as "at risk" with no guarantees made by the project to the investor. This is to verify that the capital will actually be used for the purpose of creating jobs and profit-generating activity. Proof of actual business activity is required and the use of capital investment for expenses or reserve accounts unrelated to job creation does not constitute "business activity".

Verification of Lawful Source

Proof that the actual investor has invested the capital is required. The documentation should verify the capital from the investor directly to the investment.

Proof that the investment funds was obtained legally is required by the USCIS and documentation that proves the source of their investment. Proof of documentation is usually provided through previous tax returns and financial statements.

Regional Center Projects or Private Investments

By investing in certain qualified investments or regional centers with high unemployment rates, the required investment amount is $500,000. The Immigrant Investor Pilot Program was created by Section 610 of Public Law 102-395 on October 6, 1992. This "Pilot Program" required only $500,000 of investment in exchange for permanent resident status. The investment could only be received by an economic unit defined as a Regional Center.

A Regional Center is defined as any economic unit, public or private, engaged in the promotion of economic growth, improved regional productivity, job creation and increased domestic capital investment. The individual receiving the visa is not required to actively manage the business invested in. For investors who wish to invest in a new or existing business, have an active role in the management of the operation (although simply being a Limited partner in the organization that owns the business qualifies as "AN ACTIVE ROLE."), and have at least one million US dollars to invest ($500,000 if the business is located in certain areas deemed as Rural or with very high unemployment), then the traditional EB-5 visa is the best option.

List of USCIS Approved EB-5 Regional Center Projects

Alabama

Alabama Center for Foreign Investment Regional Center

Geographic Area Covered: State of Alabama

Allowed Activities: Heavy and light manufacturing; agriculture; high technology; construction; hospitality, resort and service industries (hotels, restaurants, resorts, golf courses, entertainment, and the like); schools, health care facilities, and infrastructure; and cruise line support services.

Arizona

Arizona EB-5 Regional Center (Green Card Fund)

Geographic Area Covered: State of Arizona

Allowed Activities: Healthcare (Hospitals and Medical Office Buildings); Education; Hospitality (Hotel & Motel); Residential; Retail; Office; Restaurants; Banking; Technology; Distribution; Heavy and light manufacturing; Construction

California

American Logistics [International] Regional Center

Geographic Area Covered: South Central Los Angeles, with an emphasis on the cities of Carson, Compton, parts of the cities of Lynwood and Long Beach, the Wilmington

Allowed Activities: 1) Advanced logistic operations; 2) U.S. Customs bonded warehouse services; 3) U.S. Customs approved Centralized Examination Station.

California Consortium for Agricultural Export

Geographic Area Covered: San Joaquin Valley, CA

Allowed Activities: An agricultural investment program purchasing and converting fallow or row crop lands into permanent commercially viable fruit and/or nut trees and grape vines for the domestic and export markets, wineries, and elevator platform machinery manufacturing.

California Global Alliance Regional Center

Geographic Area Covered: Central California

Allowed Activities: Hotels, Restaurants, Retail shopping centers, Retail automotive dealerships, nursing home and assisted living facilities, casinos

New York

New York Immigration Fund, LLC

Geographic Area Covered: New York counties of the Bronx, Kings, Queens, Richmond, New York City and Long Island

Allowed Activities: Capital loans & investments; building renovation; real estate development (mixed use); hospitality; industrial space; conference space; U.S. Customs Bonded warehouse services; nursing homes; assisted living facilities; health services & medical technology; manufacturing; and technology

New York City Regional Center, LLC

Geographic Area Covered: New York City counties of Bronx, Kings, Queens, and New York (Manhattan)

Allowed Activities: Hotels; Restaurants; Retail stores; Office buildings; Light industrial warehouses; Civic buildings; Apartments/Condominiums; Mixed use I (hotel/retail/apartments); Mixed use II (office buildings/retail/condominiums)

Note: This is a partial list of approved Regional Centers. There are many more centers across different states. For a complete and current list, please consult with our immigration attorneys or visit the USCIS website.

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Green Card through Investment