USA
EB-5 INVESTOR
MIN INVESTMENT
$900,000
PROCESSING TIME
30-70 MONTHS
PERMIT TYPE
TEMPORARY RESIDENCE
FAMILY
SPOUSE, CHILD
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SUMMARY
The United States is the world’s most famous immigration destination and the world’s wealthiest country. Thousands of rich foreigners move to the United States each year to increase their wealth and send their children to the best schools in the world. Many immigrants have obtained a green card in the United States thanks to the USA EB-5 Investor Visa Program. The residence by investment program is the most popular investor visa in the world, with an annual approval rate of 10,000 visas. Applicants who are approved are given a conditional green card. After fulfilling the investment requirement for two years, the applicant is granted an unrestricted green card. The investor and his family will apply for citizenship after three years of holding an unrestricted green card.
There are two options for the EB-5 Immigrant Investor visa program in the United States. In the United States, you can invest $1.8 million in a new commercial enterprise or $900,000 in a Regional Center project. Due to the program’s high popularity, the new application process could take many years.
The US passport is one of the best globally, allowing visa-free travel to many countries worldwide, including the Schengen region of Europe, for up to 9 days in 180 days. While taxes can be high, residents can have over $100,000 in foreign income exempt from taxation per year. You can apply for an EB-5 visa to live, work, and retire in the USA.
POPULATION
328.2 Million
CAPITAL
Washington D.C.
CURRENCY
US Dollar
LANGUAGE
English
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- TYPE: RESIDENCY
- VISA-FREE: EU, US
- PROCESS: 30-70 MONTHS
INVESTMENT
To get USA EB-5 Investor Visa, you can apply through any of the two available options:
- Invest $1.8m in a commercial enterprise in the US
- Invest $900,000 in a Regional Center project in a Target Employment Area (TEA)
Importantly, each investment must meet a set of performance requirements for the investor to be eligible for an unconditional green card after two years. Usually, the investment will be recovered in two years, but due to the lengthy processing time, the duration has now been extended to more than five years, as the applicant must apply for an unconditional green card after two years of residency.
Jobs
An EB-5 investor must invest in a new commercial enterprise that will create at least ten full-time qualifying positions.
- For a new commercial enterprise, full-time jobs must be created directly by the new commercial enterprise. This means that the new retail company must employ eligible workers.
- In the event of a failing company, the EB-5 investor can rely on job maintenance.
- The investor must show that the number of existing employees is, or will be, no less than the pre-investment level for a period of at least two years.
A troubled business is described as one that has been in operation for at least two years and has experienced a net loss in the 12- or 24-month period preceding application. A U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or other immigrant allowed to work in the United States qualifies as a qualifying employee. Immigrant investors and their dependents and any alien of any nonimmigrant status are not included.
A full-time job requires a minimum of 35 hours per week of work. If the hourly requirement per week is met, a job-sharing arrangement in which two or more eligible workers share a full-time position counts as full-time jobs. Combinations of part-time jobs are not included in this description, even if the positions meet the weekly hourly criteria when combined. Intermittent, temporary, seasonal, or transient workers do not count as full-time permanent positions. On the other hand, periodic, temporary, seasonal, or transient workers are usually not considered intermittent, temporary, seasonal, or brief.
Main Applicant Fees: 3,675 USD (i526) + 1,140 USD (i485)
Dependent Fees: 750 USD (i485 for U14), 1,140 USD (i485 for 14A)
US RESIDENCY INVESTMENT OPTIONS
CAPITAL INVESTMENT
All EB-5 investors must invest $1.8M in a new commercial enterprise that was established:
- After Nov. 29, 1990; or
- On or before Nov. 29, 1990, that was:
- Purchased and restructured or reorganized into a new commercial enterprise; or
- It was expanded due to the acquisition, resulting in a net worth or employee count increase of at least 40%.
Commercial enterprise means any for-profit activity formed for the ongoing conduct of lawful business, including:
- A sole proprietorship;
- Partnership (whether limited or general);
- Holding company;
- Joint venture;
- Corporation;
- Business trust; or
- Other entity, which may be publicly or privately owned.
A commercial entity that consists of a holding company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries is included in this concept if each subsidiary is engaged in a for-profit operation formed for the ongoing conduct of a lawful business.
Noncommercial activities, such as owning and running a personal home, are not included.
Cash, machinery, inventory, other tangible property, cash equivalents, and indebtedness protected by immigrant investors’ assets are all examples of capital. However, only if they are individually and exclusively responsible, and the properties of the new commercial company on which the petition is based are not used to secure any debt. The fair market value of all capital will be determined in USD—assets obtained by illegal means, whether directly or indirectly, would not be considered.
Immigrant investors must prove that the money they spend is theirs legally.
TARGET EMPLOYMENT AREA (TEA) - REGIONAL CENTER
Investors can choose to invest $900,000 in a Regional Center project rather than their project.
Any economic agency designated by USCIS to promote economic development, improved regional competitiveness, job creation, and increased domestic capital investment is referred to as a Regional Center. A project for a Regional Center must be located in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA).
A TEA may be either
- a rural area
- or an area with a high unemployment rate at the time of investment. This is characterised as a rate of unemployment
that is at least 150 percent of the national average.
A rural area is defined as any area outside of a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) or beyond the outer boundary of any city or town with a population of 20,000 or more people, according to the United States’ most recent decennial census. Any area with an average unemployment rate of at least 150 percent of the national average unemployment rate is considered a high-unemployment area:
A new commercial enterprise located within a regional centre can generate ten full-time jobs, either directly or indirectly.
- Direct jobs provide an employer-employee partnership between the new business and the people who work for it.
- Indirect jobs exist outside of the new commercial enterprise but are generated as a result of it.
Full-time jobs require indirectly a minimum of 35 working hours per week in the case of the regional center program.
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PROCESS
Application Processing Time: 70 Months
Step 1 - Month 1
Select whether you want to invest directly in the United States or through a Regional Center. Collect the required documents and Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor (Form I-526). USCIS will process your application in 21 to 27 months.
Step 2 - Month 25
After you've been accepted, you'll need to submit Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Amend Status, to the USCIS to change your status to conditional permanent resident. The USCIS will process your application in 10 to 43 months.
Step 3 - Month 50
An EB-5 immigrant visa will be issued to you once you have been accepted. For a two-year term, the EB-5 investor and derivative family members will be granted conditional permanent residence.
CONDITIONS
- A series of requirements must be fulfilled to apply for USA EB-5 Investor Visa Program. Check all the requirements for obtaining Residency by Investment in US.
- Job Creation:
10 direct jobs in 2 years or under certain circumstances, within a reasonable time after the two years. - Criminal Record:
Police Report: Certified copies of court records (if you have been arrested). - Medical Test:
Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record. - Specific to the direct investment (non-Regional Center):
Evidence that you are or will be involved in the new commercial enterprise's management (either through day-to-day managerial control or through policy formulation).
FAMILY
- Child Dependent
Unmarried children under the age of 21
INITIAL PERMIT
- The USA EB-5 investors who are approved are given a conditional green card. Within the 90 days preceding your admission's second anniversary, you will file Form I-829, Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status. The unconditional grant of a green card is contingent on the investment meeting the defined job creation requirement. We will delete the restrictions from your lawful permanent resident status and any dependents you included if USCIS approves your petition. During the two conditional years, you must spend less than one full year abroad each year.
PERMANENT RESIDENCY
- Residency Requirement:
You must apply Form I-829 within 90 days of your admission to the United States as a conditional permanent resident on the second anniversary of your entry. - Criminal Record:
Police Report of the last places you have lived in - Financial Requirements:
Proof of investment and job creation for two years.
CITIZENSHIP
- Residence Requirements:
5 years of lawful residency in the state in which you are applying, plus three months in the state you are using. A green card is required. Cannot be absent for more than 30 months or for more than a year at a time. - Language Requirements:
Applicants must read, write, and utter words that are commonly used in the English language. - Test:
Language and knowledge and understanding of U.S. history and government (civics). - Criminal Record:
To perform Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) criminal background checks, USCIS requires applicants to be fingerprinted and photographed. Until USCIS may schedule an interview, all applicants must pass a background check.