How is an EB-5 conditional green card different from a permanent green card?

When a foreign national is a conditional permanent resident, the foreign national has all of the rights and obligations of an unconditional permanent resident. A conditional permanent resident can depart the U.S. and later be readmitted to the U.S. as a conditional permanent resident. However, conditional permanent residents must spend the majority of their time in the U.S. When the I-829 petition is filed, a conditional permanent resident must show that their EB-5 investment created the required number of jobs for U.S. workers.

The rights and responsibilities of a conditional green card holder and permanent green card holder are the same. The only difference between the two is that the conditional green card has a two-year validity period and requires the removal of conditions concerning job creation and the investment. Relevant residency requirements are also the same for both green cards.

A conditional green card is the same as a regular green card and you can live, work and travel abroad with a conditional card, as you might with a regular full green card which you apply for after 21 months and must show jobs created and investment sustained.

With a conditional green card, you have all the same rights and privileges as a permanent green card holder. Only difference is it expires in two years unless you make it permanent. For EB-5, you can convert it to a permanent card when you file an I-829 and show that you have fulfilled your EB-5 obligations such as keeping your money at risk throughout the required period, creating 10 full time jobs, etc.

The conditional green card has all the benefits of a green card (permanent residency) but is of limited duration. When you file the I-829, you must show your funds were invested in the project and the requisite 10 new jobs were created. If you filed through a Regional Center, they typically take care of this and send you the necessary paperwork to include with the I-829. The I-829 may pend for several years but your permanent residency continues until that is adjudicated. The Receipt from the I-829 filing extends your evidence of green card status for 18 months. Usually, that is not long enough so you will need to go to the local office to get I-551 stamps in your passport for a year at a time thereafter until the 10-year card arrives. If you will be out of the U.S. for more than a year, you should file for a Reentry Permit while on U.S. soil.

Only difference is in duration.