How can a non-regional center EB-5 project attract investors legally?

It is generally tough to market direct EB-5 projects because a majority of EB-5 investors go with the regional center program since it is cheaper. You do not have to be part of a regional center but you can come under the umbrella of a reputable center to be able to approach more EB-5 investors.

Contact an expert, usually a lawyer, to advise you. Marketing direct EB-5 is very difficult, as evidenced by the fact that over 90 percent of EB-5 is via the regional center program. There is not much demand for direct, although that will change if the regional center program sunsets.

Based on the facts presented, you do not need to associate your project with a regional center. You should be able to proceed with a direct EB-5 case.

You do not have to work with a regional center to raise EB-5 funds. Marketability for this project is low (at best). Furthermore, I would want to look into the creation of 100 jobs.

It highly advisable that you work with a regional center. Otherwise, you are likely to run into a number of intractable legal impediments. It is advisable that you should consult an EB-5 attorney for proper planning.

You do not need to have set up a regional center in order for you to attract EB-5 investors, since you will easily create the requisite direct jobs. You can always rent a regional center if you want to get a feel for how that works and see if you are ready to apply for a regional center designation at a later time. Because obtaining the designation is time consuming, it may be your best option to rent or even operate as a direct investment (if job creation is not an issue).

Normally, the most difficult part of any EB-5 project is finding the investors. There is no magic answer. If you do not have already have those relationships with foreign investors abroad due to prior activities, then you have to compete in the marketplace and go where the investors are, in Vietnam, India or elsewhere. While you do not have to work with a regional center, one of the advantages of marketing your project through an experienced regional center is that they may have the capability to market your project. They can give you a great deal of guidance as to whether your particular project would be competitive in the market, what changes would be necessary to make it so and what can bring your project to attention of prospective investors. That''s not true of all regional centers; some would not be as effective in this as others.

Many projects hire agents overseas to do just this unless you know the investors personally.