‎Eb-5 Investment Visa

History of the EB-5 investment Visa

The EB-5 immigrant investor program was created by the United States Congress; Immigration Act of 1990 (IMMACT90). This act notably restructured the immigration system of the United States and included changes in categories of visas for Nonimmigrants, deportation regulations, legal increase of the limitations of immigrants, among others. Congress established the EB-5 program to stimulate the United States economy by giving foreign entrepreneurs / investors who invest in American Business Enterprises the opportunity to live and work in the United States permanently. In 1993, Congress created the Foreign Investor Pilot Program which was conducted to increase interest in the EB-5 Visa Program. This is the new EB-5 Regional Centers pilot program. Regional Centers are businesses that are specially designated by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to manage investments and create jobs.

EB-5 Visa Reforms in 1990

Many of the important revisions to the EB-5 program were made in the late 1990s. These changes were prompted by the discovery of weak and fraudulent regulation on EB-5 investments. In the ruling in the United States District Court case; O`Connor discovered fraudulent investments in the EB-5 Plan. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) appeals unit, the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), issued changes to the EB-5 requirements in 1998. These changes require investors to provide evidence that EB-5 investments come from legal sources, that investors are personally committed to the EB-5 project and that guarantees on investment return are prohibited. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) attempted to apply these new regulations retroactively to previous EB-5 cases. However, Chang`s ruling against the United States made this practice illegal. The number of EB-5 applicants dropped significantly after the new regulations were enacted.

There were also four extremely important decisions made by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) during the 1990s. The AAO tries to ensure that the EB-5 regulations are uniformly applied to all new applications. For example, an issue that has not been previously addressed in an EB-5 application and is decided in one way, future applications with the same issue will be treated similarly. When the AAO makes a decision on an EB-5 application that will affect future applications, the decisions are called precedents. The four most important of the preceding decisions from the 1990s, and which are still common in EB-5 applications, are Question of Ho, Question of Izummi, Question of Hsiung and Question of Soffici. On these decisions, the AAO made important determinations about the program requirements, including the nature of the business entity that the EB-5 investment may have, the requirements for seeking legal financing, and how the investments could be managed.

EB-5 Visa Reforms in 2000

Congress passed the Basic Pilot Program Extensions and Expansions Act of 2003 to help revitalize the EB-5 program. This law requires the Government Accounting Office (GAO) to conduct a thorough investigation into the EB-5 Visa program. This research revealed that only a fraction of the 10,000 visas assigned to the EB-5 program were granted each year. This discovery prompted further reforms in the programs. One of the reforms was the creation of the (IRCU) in 2005. This specialized unit of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service has oversight of the EB-5 program that includes case auditing, form design, regulation development and policy creation. IRCU training has resulted in better coordination and increased reliability in the EB-5 program.

Changes to EB-5 Investment Visa policy

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services issued guidance on EB-5 policy in 2009. USCIS centralized the EB-5 process in the California Service Center (CSC) where it had already been done in two different centers with previously, California and Texas. Despite not being permanent yet, the EB-5 program has been successfully reauthorized. In 2009, President Obama extended the EB-5 immigrant investor pilot program through September 30, 2012.

What is an EB-5 Investment Visa?

The EB-5 Visa Program allows foreign entrepreneurs to make an investment in a United States business to obtain their “Green Card” and become a lawful permanent resident of the United States. Holders of an EB-5 Visa can live and work permanently in the United States with their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21. The EB-5 Visa program, which is also known as Immigration through Work Visa: Fifth Preference, an investor immigrant program, is operated by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The program was established by the United States Congress in 1990 to facilitate greater investment in the United States economy. Over the years, various reforms have been made to the program to increase the demand for EB-5 Visas. Such reforms include the establishment of EB-5 Regional Centers through a Pilot Program.

EB-5 Investment Visa: Requirements for Immigrant Investors

To qualify for the EB-5 Investment Visa, foreign investors must make a capital investment for the benefit of a United States business entity. The amount of investment required depends on where the business receiving the investment is located, as well as the type of business. In general, the invested capital must be valued at current market rates in the United States. Investments in economically depressed areas called Specific Areas of Employment (TAE) or rural areas, may qualify for investments of a reduced nature with a mandatory smaller investment. EB-5 investments must lead to the creation of 10 full-time jobs in the United States for a minimum of 2 years.

How many EB-5 Investment Visas are issued each year?

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services reserves 10,000 EB-5 Visas for investors for each fiscal year. There was a dramatic growth in the number of participants in the EB-5 program in 2011 with more than 3,000 investors applying through the program. Approximately 3,500 EB-5 Visas were extended in fiscal year 2011 and marked an increase of 80% over 2010. This growth can be attributed to the intensified trust in the program due to the transparency of the USCIS on it, to efficiencies in the process of application, and the growth in the number of Regional Centers established throughout the United States.

Requirements for the EB-5 Investment Visa

Foreign investors must meet specific requirements of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to obtain their permanent residence through the EB-5 Visa Program. In general, investors must meet quantitative invested capital requirements, job creation requirements, and must ensure that the business receiving the investment is eligible for the EB-5 program. Applicants for an EB-5 Visa, their spouses, and their children will obtain their permanent residency (green card) once all the requirements have been satisfactorily met and approved by the USCIS.

Requested EB-5 Investment Amount

Applicants for an EB-5 Visa are generally required to make an investment in a United States business enterprise. The EB-5 investment can be delivered in the form of cash, inventory, equipment, secured debt, tangible property, or money equivalents and its value is based on fair market value in US dollars.

The minimum amount of capital requested for the EB-5 Visa program can decrease if the investment is made in a business entity located in a Need for Work Area (TEA). The EB-5 project must be carried out in a rural area or in an area with high unemployment rates in order to be eligible under the TEA nomination.

Areas with high unemployment rates are geographic locations with an unemployment level of at least 150 percent of the national unemployment rate at the time of the EB-5 investment. Rural areas are geographic regions outside a city with a population of 20,000 or more. Rural areas can also be geographic regions outside of what the United States Office of Management and Budget has designated as metropolitan statistical areas.

EB-5 Job Creation Requirements

The USCIS requires that EB-5 investments result in the creation of 10 full-time jobs for United States workers. These jobs must be created in a period of two years once the investor has received his Conditional Permanent Residence. In some cases the investor must be able to prove that her investment led tothe creation of direct jobs for employees who work directly in the business entity that received the investment. However, the EB-5 investor may only need to prove that 10 indirect or induced jobs were created if the investment was made through a Regional Center. Indirect jobs are those created in a business that supplies goods or services for the EB-5 project. Induced jobs are those created within the wider community as a result of the income spent by the workers of the EB-5 project.

EB-5 Business

There are several types of businesses in which the EB-5 Visa applicant can invest. In general, applicants can invest directly in a new business venture or a Regional Center. Business startups are for-profit legal businesses that can take on one or more business structures. These business structures include corporations, general or limited liability companies, sole proprietorships, a business foundation (trust), or other public or private business structures. All business enterprises must be established after November 29, 1990. However, older business enterprises may qualify if the investment leads to a 40 percent growth in the number of employees or equity, or if an older business it is restructured to such a level that the result is a new business venture. In addition to individual business businesses, EB-5 Visa applicants can also invest in EB-5 Regional Centers. Regional Centers administer EB-5 projects. It may be more advantageous for an investor to invest in a project managed by a Regional Center since the investor will not have to launch EB-5 projects alone.

Summary of Requirements for the EB-5 Investment Visa

The investment must be made in a commercial entity / for-profit business in the United States.

The investment must create 10 full-time jobs for US employees for a period of 2 years.

What is an EB-5 Investment Visa Project?

EB-5 Investment Visa projects are generally established by the Regional Entries even though EB-5 investors may create their own new business ventures. Approximately 90 to 95 percent of all EB-5 Visa applicants invest in a Regional Center project. EB-5 Visa investors must direct the required investment capital to a specific EB-5 project. EB-5 projects must consist of business start-ups that lead to the creation of 10 full-time jobs for US workers. New business ventures are defined as legal, for-profit businesses that were created after November 29, 1990. Older businesses may also qualify for EB-5 investments if the investment involves a significant restructuring of the business. or that the number of employees or the equity of the existing business increases by 40 percent. Companies can be structured in various ways in the form of sole proprietorships, general or limited liability companies, corporations, a business foundation (trust), or other business structures, whether public or private.

Types of EB-5 Investment Visa Projects

EB-5 projects adopt various types of business models and operate within many different industries. The types of EB-5 Projects include:

Mixed-use retail;

Hotels;

Sports stadiums;

Restaurants;

Agricultural developments including vineyards and almond farms;

Electric vehicles;

Manufacture;

Biotechnology and medical technologies;

Casinos;

Entertainment Venues;

Convention Centers;

Office buildings.

How to choose an EB-5 project

Choosing an EB-5 Regional Center and a project to invest in can be daunting. However, choosing a Regional Center and EB-5 project that meets USCIS criteria and is viable as a business is probably the most important step in the EB-5 process since the investor`s permanent residence depends on the project`s ability to generate employment and adhere to USCIS criteria. Investors can initially search for particular projects if they are familiar with a particular industry or project location. However, there are certain diligent questions that EB-5 Visa applicants should ask before deciding where to invest.  No one should pressure you to choose a particular project in a particular Regional Center. Make sure you do your homework before you make your EB-5 investment.

Regional Entries even though EB-5 investors may create their own new business ventures. Approximately 90 to 95 percent of all EB-5 Visa applicants invest in a Regional Center project. EB-5 Visa investors must direct the required investment capital to a specific EB-5 project. EB-5 projects must consist of business start-ups that lead to the creation of 10 full-time jobs for US workers. New business ventures are defined as legal, for-profit businesses that were created after November 29, 1990. Older businesses may also qualify for EB-5 investments if the investment involves a significant restructuring of the business. or that the number of employees or the equity of the existing business increases by 40 percent. Companies can be structured in various ways in the form of sole proprietorships, general or limited liability companies, corporations, a business foundation (trust), or other business structures, whether public or private.

Types of EB-5 Investment Visa Projects

EB-5 projects adopt various types of business models and operate within many different industries. The types of EB-5 Investment Visa Projects include:

Mixed-use retail

Hotels

Sports stadiums

Restaurants

Agricultural developments including vineyards and almond farms

Electric vehicles

Manufacture

Biotechnology and medical technologies

Casinos

Entertainment Venues

Convention Centers

Office buildings

How to choose an EB-5 project

Choosing an EB-5 Regional Center and a project to invest in can be daunting. However, choosing a Regional Center and EB-5 project that meets USCIS criteria and is viable as a business is probably the most important step in the EB-5 process since the investor`s permanent residence depends on the project`s ability to generate employment and adhere to USCIS criteria. Investors can initially search for particular projects if they are familiar with a particular industry or project location. However, there are certain diligent questions that EB-5 Visa applicants should ask before deciding where to invest. Some good questions to start with include:

No one should pressure you to choose a particular project in a particular Regional Center. Make sure you do your homework before you make your EB-5 investment.

Common questions

What is the value of the eb-5 visa?

According to the Court`s decision, which has already entered into force, the amounts charged for the EB-5 return from US$ 1.8 million to US$ 900 thousand (if the desired investment occurs in a large American metropolis), and from $900,000 to $500,000 (in cases where the investment will take place in less developed areas.

How does the eb-5 visa work?

What is the EB-5 investor visa?

 The EB-5 is a category of permanent residence visa in the United States, created in the early 1990s. ... This grant allows the investor to enter the country, his spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21.

How long does the eb-5 visa take?

2 months

On average, this interview takes 1 to 2 months, depending on the activity flow of the consulate. Once approved by the consular agent, the investor will receive a package with visas and other documents that must be opened by immigration officials in the United States when entering that country.