How can I self sponsor my EB-5 application?

“Self-sponsoring” in the EB-5 context usually means you are not relying on an employer or family member to petition for you. You are sponsoring yourself by making the qualifying investment and filing your own EB-5 petition (Form I-526E or I-526, depending on the structure). It does not necessarily mean you must make a “direct EB-5” investment or personally run every aspect of the business. There are two main paths to qualify for future green card status pursuant to the EB-5 program:
Regional Center EB-5. In this scenario, you invest in a project sponsored by a USCIS-approved Regional Center, which means your investment is typically more passive, with the RC project handling almost all of the many operational details, and having obtained an economic study that reflects that job creation can include indirect and induced jobs, and you would not normally have any day-to-day managerial responsibilities over the entity's business operations. However, this EB-5 case is still considered as a “self-sponsored” case because you are the petitioner, your investment qualifies you and no employer sponsors you. Most EB-5 applicants today use this route.

Direct EB-5 Investment. In this type of filing, you invest directly into your own business or another operating business wherein you would usually have a more active management role and the business must directly create at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers (US citizens, nationals, permanent residents, asylees or refugees), with no indirect job counting and as stated above, more operational responsibility. In this instance, this EB-5 case is also referred to as a “self-sponsored” EB-5 because entrepreneurs often create and run their own companies.

In response to your other question, about whether or not you have to do everything and then if you need an attorney, generally, the Regional Center EB5 case requires less hands-on time for you to manage the case and filing. We definitely recommend you retain a seasoned attorney who has practiced in the EB5 space for decades, as this is one of the most complex green card case filings there is, if not the most.

If you know how to do the application, you can always do it yourself. From my experience, I would say you will be better off working with an immigration lawyer even if you are the only one involved with the EB-5 investment.

For an EB-5 direct investment case, you typically need a team of professionals because USCIS closely reviews the immigration aspects and the actual business operations. Besides the EB-5 immigration attorney, you may consider hiring a business attorney, an accountant, and a business plan writer, among other professionals.

I am not 100% sure what you mean. But in general, people who self-sponsor mean they do not have a petitioner. In the EB5 context, no one really has a petitioner. But for people who use regional centers, the center puts together the project, and the project-related info (including hiring data), and the investor is responsible for the source of their investment funds and their eligibility. If you invest in your own project, then you need to also create all of the project documents and demonstrate hiring, spending, etc., but you also control the profits and upside.