EB5 Investor Visa Lawyer Blog

The EB 5 investor visa has been implemented for some time. The Washington Post, in an article from 2010, has details regarding immigrants investing in United States business' in exchange for a visa. The article discusses that the number of foreigner's who are willing to invest in the United States. The USCIS is the government agency which approves or denies the I-526 petition which is for entrepeneurs.

According to the article, in 2008, 1,443 EB 5 investor visas were granted. In 2009, the number increased to 4,218. Most of the entrepeneurs in the approved petitions were from Asia and, in particular, China and South Korea. The EB 5 investor visa is open to petitioners who are not necessarily from treaty-trader countries such as with an E-1 or E-2.

The article also discussed the requirement of immigrant's demonstrating that their investment created at least 10 jobs for the I-829 to be approved. Regional centers, as the article discusses, are the preferred favorite investments since these are approved by the United States Government. One of the reasons is that "indirect" jobs will be considered for approval and not just "direct" jobs. The investment is always at risk but the investor should use the best method to insure that the permanent residency is obtained and the regional centers offer this with the indirect job method.

The program was established in 1990 which is over 20 years ago. The lowering of the investment from $1,000,000 to $500,000 with an approved regional center has allowed more entrepeneurs to apply. Also, given currency fluctuations since the investment is in dollars, countries which have currency which has become stronger against the dollar offer additional citizens of that country this opportunity.

Continue reading " Washington Post: EB 5 Investor Visa Article: January 2010 " »

USCIS has a blog website: The Beacon. The Beacon posts blogs regarding immigration issues and a recent blog posting in August of 2011 includes information on the EB5 immigrant investor visa.

The USCIS wants to encourage entrepeneurs to invest and open new business' in the United States. Per the blog posting, in August of 2011, the USCIS is proceeding with the following methods. First, as to the EB-2 as an employment cased second preference immigrant visa, the USCIS clarifying that if the petitiopnere satisfies the existing requirements, they may also qualify for a National Interest Waiver if they can demonstrate that their business endeavors are in the interests of the USA. Second, there will be an expansion of the premium processing services for immigrant petition for managers and executives who are multinational. Third, there is clarification when a sole employee-entrepeneur can establish an employer-employee relationship which is valid for the purpose of qualification for an H-1B which is a non immigrant visa. Fourth, implentation of enhancements to streamline and expedite the EB-5 process. Fifth, seek engagement opportunities to seek feedback and input from start up companies, new business' and entrepreneurs to address their unique circumstances.

Continue reading " United States Customs and Immigration Service Blog Posting: August 2011: EB 5 comments " »

Under the USCIS, the EB 5 immigrant investor visa is designed to create jobs in the United States. The minimum requirement is 10 direct or indirect jobs. The entrepeneur invests $500,000 under the EB 5 pilot program and this is with an approved United States Regional Center which makes the investment. The job creation can be indirect so that even if the investment fails, the jobs are created for persons in the United States who are legally entitled to work.

The United States White House website has a recent blog posting about the issue of job creation in the United States. Leaders of technology were invited to give their opinions and ideas on job creation and competitiveness. Included were Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, AOL co founder Steve Case and many others. Many of these were from Silicon Valley. Aneesh Chopra, CTO of the United States, discussed contributions which immigrants can make in terms of the economy and job creation.

One of the immigration visas discussed was the EB 5. In the text of the article, the investment amount is $1,000,000 and ten new jobs need to be created. Under the EB5 investor visa pilot program, this investment is reduced to $500,000 when invested with a United States Regional Center in targeted employment areas. The amount of $500,000 is for the investment and the entrepeneur will obtain temporary permanent residency for themselves and their unmarried children under the age of 21. The process includes filing the I-526 petition and then, 2 years later, asking for adjustment of status with the filing of the I-829. After non conditional permanent residency is obtained, the investor and any other who obtained lawful permanent residency with them, can then petition for United States Citizenship with the filing of the N-400.

As discussed in this program, the EB 5 process is very difficult and complex.

Continue reading " White House Website: August 2011: Job Creation: EB5 " »

A prominent magazine, Bloomberg-BusinessWeek, just published an article on the EB 5 program. The article is titled "The EB-5 Program: Create American Jobs, Get a Green Card" discusses the recent status and updates on the EB 5 Visa program. The EB 5 immigrant investor visa is designed for entrepeneurs who invest in job creation as detailed in the article. The United States Government, through the United States Customs and Immigration Service, are offering permanent residency to investors who create at least ten jobs and invest $500,000. The article also discusses regional centers.

Under the EB5 pilot program, the investor invests the $500,000 with a United States Approved Regional Center. The Regional Center is responsible for the investment and also making sure the requirements of ten (10) jobs created is satisfied. The ten jobs can be either direct or indirect jobs. Many regional centers use indirect job creation such as the employment of construction personnel as well as many others. In this manner, even if the investment does not produce a return, the permanent residency conditions are satisfied for the investment.

The article discusses that over 30,000 jobs have been created and the investment amount is approximately 1.5 billion dollars. The EB 5 pilot program, as the article explains, sunsets in September of 2012. There is no guarantee of an extension and the article discusses the benefits of extending the current program. As such, it is very important to petition as soon as possible.

If you are interested in joining the thousands of investors from all over the world who have obtained lawful permanent residency in the United States for themselves, their spouses and their unmarried children under the age of 21, you should consider the EB 5 investor visa. The first procedure is to file the I-526 petition with USCIC. If you have $500,000 to invest, the EB 5 pilot program is the best strategy since the permanent residency is assured and the job requirements met with an approved regional center.

Continue reading " Bloomberg-Business Week: August 4, 2011: EB 5 Program " »