Questions and Answers > EB-5 Requirements

How are Seasonal Employees counted towards job creation in the EB-5 Visa Program?

How do full-time employees factor into the ''Full-time Employment'' definition if they work at a seasonal resort hotel that is closed 5-6 months out of the year?

Answers

• Lei Jiang

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 22, 2013

  They do not count.

• Reza Rahbaran

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 18, 2013

  USCIS defines full time employees as those that are employed for at least 35 hours per week.

• Julia Roussinova

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 18, 2013

  Seasonal employees do not qualify. Jobs must be full-time permanent jobs. Full-time is generally 35 hours a week. It is the actual jobs that count, employees may be fired and hired. as long as the full-time permanent jobs are maintained.

• Daqin Zhang

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 18, 2013

  Seasonal Employees cannot be counted to meet the direct job creation requirement in EB5. For more information about EB5, please visit our website. If you are in the Los Angeles area, we can schedule a meeting to discuss your immigration plan.

• BoBi Ahn

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 18, 2013

  Only Full-time employees are counted for the job creation requirement under the EB-5 Investor Program.

• Mona Shah

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 18, 2013

  As you are aware, EB-5 investment funds must create (or save) a minimum of 10 full time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers for at least 2 years. It is important to note, however, that employment is defined in terms of the position (rather than the worker) requiring full-time (35 hours per week) employment. Therefore, some investments may qualify under the program where individual workers are changed as long last the position itself continues for the required period . USCIS has also made a distinction between workers who may last 2 years on a construction job (considered seasonal) from electricians whose work would be intermittent and less than 2 years in duration. Intermittent, temporary, seasonal or transient jobs are not considered full time. Tourist jobs may be considered full time if they are expected to last at least 2 years. While there are a number of uncertainties under the EB-5 program, it is unlikely that jobs at a seasonal resort closed for almost half of a year will meet the job creation requirement under the existing law. It would indeed be very risky to proceed with such a project.

• Steven Anapoell

  Securities Attorney

  Answered on March 15, 2013

  They need to be full-time jobs. Best thing to do is consult an EB-5 Program economist to assist you with an economic model that counts indirect and induced jobs rather than counting W-2s.

• Fredrick W Voigtmann

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 15, 2013

  The positions must be fulltime and permanent. Therefore, seasonal employees do not count. Of course, if you have other activities or other work for them to perform during the time the resort is closed or in its off season, then you might be able to demonstrate that the positions are fulltime and permanent. It is the position, not the individual employee, that counts for direct job creation credit.

• Susan Pilcher

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 15, 2013

  Seasonal employees are ineligible for inclusion in the job count.

• Neville M Leslie

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on March 15, 2013

  Have to be full-time year round.

• Jinhee Wilde

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 3, 2012

  Seasonal jobs are not usually counted for the EB-5 jobs unless we could somehow show how they could be considered full-time, permanent jobs.

• Daniel B Lundy

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  Unfortunately, those employees would likely not meet the definition of ''permanent'' under the regulations. There are cases where an employee might be a groundskeeper in the warmer months, and a snowplow driver or ski-lift operator in the winter, if the resort were open all year. However, if the employees are simply laid off for part of the year, they would not qualify under the EB-5 program.

• Taher Kameli

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  They may not be qualified.

• Lynne Feldman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  I don''t believe they would be considered full-time employees.

• Marjan Kasra

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  The following is the USCIS criteria for job creation: Create or preserve at least 10 full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers within two years (or under certain circumstances, within a reasonable time after the two-year period) of the immigrant investor’s admission to the United States as a Conditional Permanent Resident. Create or preserve either direct or indirect jobs: Direct jobs are actual identifiable jobs for qualified employees located within the commercial enterprise into which the EB-5 investor has directly invested his or her capital. Indirect jobs are those jobs shown to have been created collaterally or as a result of capital invested in a commercial enterprise affiliated with a regional center by an EB-5 investor. A foreign investor may only use the indirect job calculation if affiliated with a regional center. Note: Investors may only be credited with preserving jobs in a troubled business. If you have any questions or need legal representation, I''ll be happy to help.

• Charles Raether

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  Well, that wouldn''t quite be full-time employment now, would it? If there were some other jobs that existed in the off-season that aren''t present during the peak season (say, maintenance people) that combined with the peak-season employees would equal one year-round full-time employee, then that could theoretically count as one employee.

• Kate Kalmykov

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on November 29, 2012

  Full-time employment as contemplated by the EB-5 program requires that employees be employed full-time, 35 hours per week, year round. Seasonal employment will not qualify.