How do I know which EB-5 Regional Center I can invest in?

Investors are free to put funds into any Regional Center affiliated project . However it is incumbent upon each investor to have an experienced professional review the investment being considered. Due diligence is critical and we suggest that a review of the project and the principals as well as the RC be conducted before and investment is made. Recently USCIS Director Mayorkas pointed out that the Immigration Service does not review the qualifications nor backgrounds of Regional Center principles and more notably the players involved in projects. Such due diligence is up to the investor to conduct. You should also understand the investment is made into a particular project not a Regional Center. These days ''track records'' of regional centers should be carefully scrutinized as some of the statistics we see are skewed to a certain extent and are not as relative as they were in the past. That said, a solid infrastructure at an RC should not be overlooked.

It depends on what your investment goals are. Possible investment goals in the EB-5 investment context may include: 1. Minimizing loss of your initial investment amount; 2. Obtaining permanent resident status in the US for you as the principal investor and for your immediate family members (spouse and minor children under age 21 at the time of filing of I-526 petition), which is possible if your I-829 (petition for removal of conditions on permanent residence) is approved after the 2 years of your conditional residence in the US. This generally means that the required number of jobs will be created by the EB-5 project you have invested in; 3. Making profit for you as an investor. Achieving all of these goals may be quite difficult in a regional center investment as opposed to a regular EB-5 program investment. If obtaining permanent residence in the US for you and your immediate family members has the utmost importance for you, then you should likely pursue a regular EB-5 investment rather than an investment through an approved regional center. If, on the other hand, you wish to pursue a regional center investment and not worry about managing a business, it becomes important for you to consider what type of investment structure a particular regional center undertakes and carefully consider advantages and disadvantages of each type of investment structure. To that end, you should choose a regional center and an investment project by taking these issues into consideration.

There are over 220 USCIS approved Regional Centers, which makes it difficult for an EB-5 investor to choose. I would ask the Regional Centers for their approval track record in I-526 and I-829 approvals. Also ask them how many denials and request for evidence they received. It would be advisable to invest in more established regional centers that have a proven track record without having too many Request for Evidence and Denials. If the Regional Center has been around for 4 or more years, the chances are that they would have the I-829 approval by now if their projects were good and produced the jobs required. Choose a Regional Center that are more forthcoming with their history.

There are more than 200 regional centers out there. It is really hard to choose. If I were you, I would start my research from those with solid track records on I-526 and I-829. Also, if you are interested in a particular industry, such as senior housing, you would be able to quickly narrow down your choices.

Due to the complexity of the investment, I always encourage investors to seek professional advice on the soundness of the investment. I also want to stress the importance of reading the PPM and business plan. Investors should take time to read through the legal documents in order to make an informed decision.

Before selecting a project to invest in for EB-5 purposes, it is important to conduct due diligence on both the EB-5 Regional Center and the project itself. It is important for you as an investor to carefully evaluate the suitability of both regional center and investment project. We encourage investors to consult with business, securities and/or financial professionals to address the viability of the investment. Among others, some good questions to start with would be: How long has the regional center been operating and how many EB-5 projects have they completed? How many I-526 approvals and I-829 approvals have they had? What economic model is used by the regional center and project? How are the jobs calculated and allocated? What are the total number of jobs expected for the project and how many EB-5 investors will the project be accepting? These are just a few of the relevant questions to ask when conducting your due diligence on both the EB-5 regional center and the specific project.

The following are some important criteria which need to be used to determine the credibility of an EB 5 project:

EB-5 REGIONAL CENTER

DUE DILIGENCE checklist

Client Due Diligence regarding EB-5 Project
a. What is the projected return on investment? (in prospectus)
b. Obtain documentation of returns on past EB-5 investment projects.
c. How many projects has EB-5 Company completed?

It depends on the type of project that you want to invest in and where the project is located. Many regional centers will only do business in certain areas where they have applied and been approved to do business by CIS. Also, they have to be approved to do business in certain industries. Many have this information available online, others do not, so you will have to contact the center to speak with them about the projects that they have pending, how their deals are structured and where these projects are located. You should also meet with the people who will be running the project with the regional center to make sure that you feel comfortable doing business with them. If you do not have a particular type of project, sector of industry, or geographic area that you would like to invest in, then you have a lot more options. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions.

Thank you for contacting us. You should find an immigration attorney who has extensive experience in the EB5 visas. They will be able to tell you which regional centers and or projects have successfully been used by them for their clients. While immigration attorneys are not able to recommend a regional center, they are able to tell you which ones they have used successfully. We are available if you have any further questions.

Need to do due diligence on both the RC and the project.

Your goals need to be analyzed. If your primary goal is to obtain conditional permanent residency then you may wish to invest in a RC that has a history of success in the EB5 process.While some RC projects are new and innovative are offering greater interest rate of returns, and this choice may be to your liking. Please make sure you seek the services of a business advisor to review the viability of the RC EB5 project, the US immigration attorney will not and should not offer this advise.

Choosing a regional center is difficult, but there are several guidelines that you can follow:

1. Is it a regional center with previous successes or a new one? If it is a new one, this is not necessarily a reason to preclude it from your choice. There are a number of good projects from new regional centers. If it is an existing one, what is the RC''s history.
2. Does the project make sense? What is the financial structure? What is the EB5 component? What is the exit plan. Get someone to help you review the documents.
3. What is the experience and background of the project developers. Do not confuse the project developers from the RC management.
4. It is often a good idea to retain an immigration attorney who can point you to a due diligence expert. This will be an additional expense, but often worth it.
5. Read ALL the documents relating to the project. Ask the RC to explain issues you do not understand.

Opening up communication with the Regional Center is key.

You need to do some research, or hire an attorney or EB5 analyst for advice. Generally speaking, you should look for EB5 center''s track record.

There are a number of factors to consider both legally and financially. Our Firm can help you with the legal aspect. We can also refer you to financial firms to evaluate the projects'' financial soundness. This is a complicated process but one where we can assist with. I''d be happy to schedule a consultation.

There are many to choose from. We can help you narrow down the search. Frankly, the MOST important thing is track record/success rate. Beyond that, you have to invest in one you are comfortable with!

You can ask for evidence of their approval as a regional center and also ask if their project has been "approved". It''s probably best for you to consult with a qualified EB-5 immigration attorney or investment adviser who can help you understand the EB-5 process or help diligence regional centers and projects for you.

Determining which regional center will receive your hard earned $500,000 (assuming their Project is in a TEA) is a very personal choice. The criteria that you might use to make that determination may be very different than another investor''s. For instance, you may be interested in a particular industry or a particular region of the United States. No matter what type of project you are considering, I have some very general advice: 1) Thoroughly review the Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) and Business Plan of all projects you are considering. If there is no PPM and/or Business Plan, you should look elsewhere. 2) Thoroughly review the other corporate documents provided by the regional center, for instance the Limited Partnership Agreement or Limited Liability Company Operating Agreement, Subscription Agreement and Escrow Agreement. If these documents are inconsistent with the PPM and Business Plan, you should look elsewhere. 3) To the extent possible, research the claims made in the PPM and Business Plan. Confirm the track record of the principals, discuss the claims made with independent people that you know and respect, who are familiar with the industry of the Project. This is very basic "due diligence" and is essential to making a decision with confidence. If you would like more specific due diligence questions or tips, feel free to reach out to me. 4) Ignore any claims or promises that are not written down in either the PPM, the corporate documents or a side letter. If a claim is only made verbally, you will have a difficult time proving that you relied on it, should you have reason to complain later. 5) Do not ignore your "gut." Often when things are too good to be true, they are. Good luck with the process, I wish you the best!

As an investor you can invest in any of the Regional Centers out there. However, it is incumbent upon you and your Counsel to conduct proper due diligence to ensure that the it is in fact a viable investment that will create the requisite number of jobs to ensure that you get your I-829 approved.

You would need to hire a capable attorney and ask him to do the investigation for you. Then once you have sufficient data you can decide and choose.

They are all listed on the USCIS website.

You should retain experienced counsel to assist you in making the decision Make sure you both consider a number of due diligence related items in selecting the optimal investment to suit your immigration and investment goals. Read this article about questions for EB-5 investors to ask Regional Centers for more information.

To select a regional center project to invest in, you must due a very thorough due diligence. If you do not have the expertise, hire an experiences and well qualified accountant and use professional in every aspect of the program to be sure that you are comfortable with the investment. Please also remember that the law requires that the investment needs to be at risk.

Investors should consult with an experienced attorney and financial advisor when deciding which regional center to invest in.