Questions and Answers > EB-5 Investments

How can I change my attorney in the middle of my EB-5 process to file RFE documents?

I field my I-526 in 2015. The attorney who handled my paperwork was also the general partner of the regional center. In 2017, he stepped down from the general partner role of the regional center. The developer of the investment project took over. In 2021, I finally received RFE notice which requires me to submit an up-to-date business plan of the project. USCIS states that the project is overly subscribed. I talked to my attorney who said that he will help me file the RFE required docs, but I need to pay him extra fees which is a significant amount and he told me that I can talk to other attorneys about the RFE and see how much they charge. I contacted the developer who told me that nothing to worry about, their attorney will send me a new business plan. Questions: I''ve been thinking to change an attorney for a long time (there were a lot of things happened in these 6 years), so is it ok to have a new attorney on board? 2. I''ve talked to an attorney. He told me that as long as RC provides the docs, I will be fine. Does that mean I can file for those docs by myself? 3. USCIS has already stated that the project is overly subscribed based on previous plan, is it reasonable to continue with this project?

Answers

• Rani Emandi

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on April 21, 2021

  Any individual can change the attorney of record by submitting a new G-28 to the USCIS.

• Lynne Feldman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on April 15, 2021

  You have the right to select whichever attorney you choose. The new attorney files a form called a G-28 to indicate they are now representing you.

• Fredrick W Voigtmann

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on April 13, 2021

  You probably should be represented by an attorney and not file the RFE response yourself. RFE responses can be tricky and if you do not address all of the legal issues raised by USCIS, you could be looking at a denial of the petition. You can always change attorneys; your new attorney will notify USCIS that he or she is the new attorney of record by asking you to sign Form G-28 and submitting that form to USCIS as part of the RFE response. If the project is truly oversubscribed, that means that either or both of the following may be true: 1. There may not be sufficient job creation to support all the EB-5 investors; 2. Not all of the invested capital may be considered "at risk." If you were one of the first EB-5 investors in the project or you at least invested your EB-5 capital during a time when the project was not yet oversubscribed, then your case might still have a chance. It is the later investors who must really worry about the over subscription issue.

• Bernard P Wolfsdorf

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on April 13, 2021

  It is very easy to change lawyers in the U.S. You merely have the new lawyer notify the prior lawyer.

• Dale Schwartz

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on April 13, 2021

  You can change lawyers any time you want. You will need a new business plan to reply to the "over-subscribed" issue.