I am developing land in Adelanto CA and am interested to learn more about the parameters of EB-5 investors. Is it possible to get funding from an EB-5 investor for commercial development? I am in the process of developing this land, primarily for cannabis operators to lease the property. I would like to secure an EB-5 investor to further scale our operations and develop additional parcels of land. Is this possible under the regulations of EB-5? What would I need to do?
EB-5 is federal, so even if a state is OK with cannabis and THC, unless the feds are (they are not), you may need another plan. Otherwise, any other lawful commercial enterprise can work for EB-5.
Create a private EB-5 offering. But depending on the type of cannabis operations, you may already be banned. It is still a federal program and if it is banned federally, no go.
Unfortunately this will not be an option unless marijuana is made legal under federal laws.
Think of EB-5 as a job creation program. To get investors, first you need to be able to ensure that if they invest in your project, they will get a green card. So we have to show how a $500,000—or if not in TEA or rural, $1m—investment will create 10 full jobs, or when the regional center program is reauthorized, 10 indirect jobs. Then you need to develop an exit strategy to repay the money, which is more complicated but smart investors want to know, “How will I get my money back?”
