What is the timeline for investing in direct EB-5 projects?

Timing is not your biggest issue; it is investing in an existing business and showing new job creation. This is very hard and you need to make sure you qualify before making any investment.

You can apply for EB-5 as soon as you make the minimum investment amount. Keep in mind that you must prove in advance that the new commercial enterprise (it must have been established after Nov. 26, 1990) will more likely than not create 10 jobs within two years. You should consult with an experienced immigration attorney to make sure that the EB-5 requirements will be met.

This type of deals requires a good business plan and in-depth due diligence study. Ideally, when you pay $500,000, that should be the point for filing I-526 and not later for a number of reasons. First, the $500,000 payment represents the required threshold for an EB-5 petition. Second, you also indicated you would be running the business for three years and try to create jobs. In reality, it means you are already operating the business as if it were an EB-5 direct investment. Finally, the planned additional payments (investments) on annual basis of $100,000 each year for three years can actually help you grow the business and help create jobs. This can make the goal of creating the required 10 jobs easier to accomplish. Advisably, you should consult mergers and acquisitions experts and an EB-5 attorney for proper structuring of a beneficial agreement.

It could be very problematic to use this existing business as a vehicle for your direct EB-5 investment. You need a consultation appointment with an immigration attorney before you proceed further.

The timeline for investing in a direct EB-5 project is entirely up to you. You simply want to make sure that it is a valid project that meets the legal and statutory requirements. If the business is located in a TEA, then paying $500,000 first would be sufficient with respect to the minimum investment. If you are authorized to work in the United States, it is fine for you to be running the business. Job creation is essential, as you must show that you were able to create 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers. You should file the EB-5 investor petition on Form I-526 as soon as possible, given the fact that at some point in the near future Congress could enact legislation that would raise the minimum investment to at least $925,000 and as high as $1.8 million. Even after you pay the $500,000 you will still presumably be a partial owner, as you will have to have some evidence of your ownership interest in the business. If you do not become an official owner until such time as the entire investment is paid off, that could be an issue. With your corporate lawyer you should attempt to restructure the deal where you acquire some ownership interest at the time you make the $500,000 investment, even if it''s a minority interest.

If the TEA is certified by the state or an appropriate government agency for your area, you could file I-526 after investing $500,000, as the current TEA investment amount is still $500,000. However, this minimum amount is expected to rise by USCIS regulatory action soon to be finalized.

You can file the I-526 petition with less than $500,000 as long as a plan for the remaining investment is in place. A bigger concern in this scenario may be the "existing" business and its qualification as a NCE and job creation. You need an experienced EB-5 attorney to evaluate this opportunity and its suitability for EB-5.

If a business qualifies as TEA, you can file I-526 once you made the initial $500,000 investment.

You need to have an experienced EB-5 attorney help you structure the investment so it will qualify. It can be done, but it has to be done right.

You may not work in the U.S. until authorized to do so by the USCIS. This authorization is obtained through the approval of the I-526 and filing of the I-485.

If the immigration benefit of EB-5 is the reason you would make this investment, I recommend you consult with an experienced EB-5 investment attorney before taking any action.

First, certain conditions must be met if you are considering purchasing an existing business instead of creating a new business for EB-5 purposes. 1) Restructure or reorganize the purchased/existing business, or 2) Expand the existing business such that a 40 percent increase in the net worth or number of employees results. As far as your timeline goes for the investing of the $800,000, you can file after $500,000 is invested.