How can an EB-5 immigrant work in the United States? - EB5Investors.com

How can an EB-5 immigrant work in the United States?

We would like to invest $500,000 through a regional center and apply for EB-5. My family consists of me, my wife and my 18 year old daughter. I am wondering if we have to work for the regional center? Or will we all be able to work in any job in the United States after applying? Are there any employment restrictions for EB-5 immigrants?

Answers

Steffanie J Lewis

Steffanie J Lewis

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Yes, an EB-5 immigrant has authority to work in the United States. No, you are not required to work for the EB-5 regional center or any of its programs. You will be able to work in any job in the United States for which you are hired. There are no restrictions applicable to EB-5 immigrants. Of course, all persons must obey the laws of the United States and refrain from illegal conduct. Under the EB-5 program, upon approval of the I-526 petition, the foreign investor and his immediate family may apply for admission to the United States as conditional permanent residents. A permanent resident has a right to live and work in the United State without any restriction. If the foreign investor and his immediate family are physically present in the United States while the I-526 petition is processing, there is no authorization to work until the I-526 is approved. The investor and family may then file to become conditional permanent residents and for work authorization.

J Bruce Weinman

J Bruce Weinman

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You can work anywhere you like. You do not have to work for the regional center, and they probably would not let you if you wanted to. The purpose of the regional center is to allow for a "hands-off" approach to the EB-5 process. You may participate in some partnership or partnership-type meetings (annually or semi-annually) - but many regional centers do this telephonically.

Fredrick W Voigtmann

Fredrick W Voigtmann

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You do not have to work for anyone, including the regional center. Also, you will not be authorized to work unless and until you receive work authorization or your conditional green card. A pending or even an approved I-526 alone is not sufficient to grant any immigration benefits, including work authorization. You should retain an experienced immigration attorney who can advise you on the requirements and your options.

Salvatore Picataggio

Salvatore Picataggio

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

There are no requirements to work for the company in which you invest. As a green card holder (even as a conditional green card holder) you can be employed anywhere in the United States. As your spouse and daughter will also be green card holders, they can also be employed anywhere in the United States.

Ed Beshara

Ed Beshara

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once you, your spouse and minor child obtains conditional permanent residency, all of you will be able to work for any employer in the United States or set-up your own company. You do not have to work for the regional center.

Oliver Huiyue Qiu

Oliver Huiyue Qiu

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

An EB-5 investor must be involved in the investment project by either exercising managerial control of the day-to-day operations or through policy formulation. He/she must be "actively involved in the business;" a purely passive investor may not qualify for the EB-5 classification. Typically in a regional center, the project is structured as an investment in a limited partnership; under current regulations, even he or she, as a limited partner, must have a certain level of involvement in the running of the business. If the investor is a limited partner, he or she must have been granted all (i.e., not simply some) of the rights, powers, and duties granted to the other limited partners in the partnership in order to be considered sufficiently engaged in the business.

Sara Wang

Sara Wang

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You do not have to work for the project you have invested in. Once you have received your conditional green card you may apply for any U.S. jobs that a regular green card holder would qualify for.

John J Downey

John J Downey

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once you obtain your conditional green card, you are free to work for anyone, anywhere in the United States.

Lynne Feldman

Lynne Feldman

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You may work anywhere in the United States after you receive the green card. The regional centers do not offer employment opportunities for you, typically just an investment opportunity from which you and your family can obtain green card status. To work in the United States before getting your green card would require you to be in a work-authorized nonimmigrant status.

Ian E Scott

Ian E Scott

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

During the application process for an EB-5 (I-526 petition) you are not eligible to work (unless you have a visa that permits you to work). When you are approved and after your green card is issued, you can work anywhere you like without restriction. The conditions on an EB-5 green card only relate to the fact that two years after the visa is issued, you must show that the business created 10 full-time jobs.

Shahzad Q Qadri

Shahzad Q Qadri

RC Creators
Answered on

As an EB-5 immigrant through a regional center, you have the ability to work anywhere in the country - you do not have to be employed by the regional center.

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You can work in any job.

Jinhee Wilde

Jinhee Wilde

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

When your EB-5 case gets approved, you and your wife and daughter, if she is not yet 21, could all get the immigrant visa and become conditional residents (green card holders) for two years. As conditional residents, you are able to live and work anywhere without restrictions. After your condition is removed by getting the I-829 approved, your resident status will become permanent and there will be no restrictions on employment.

Matthew Kolodziej

Matthew Kolodziej

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You do not have to work for the regional center. You will be able to work for any U.S. employer after receiving conditional residence.

Robert Lee

Robert Lee

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once your I-526 (conditional permanent residence) is approved, you and your family will be eligible for work authorization. You do not have to work for the regional center. You can work anywhere you want. There are generally no employment restrictions for EB-5 immigrants.

Enrique Gonzalez

Enrique Gonzalez

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

The benefit of investing through a regional center is that the investor does not have to work for the regional center. In fact, the regional center is based on the fact that the investor will usually only participate in the management of the new enterprise by assisting in the formulation of the enterprise&#39s business policy. In other words, the EB-5 investor is a limited partner who is limited to those activities which are provided for by law. As such, EB-5 investors can work in any job in the United States and do not have any employment restrictions once their conditional residence has been approved.

Anthony Korda

Anthony Korda

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Once your visa is issued and you arrive in the United States as a permanent resident, you and all family members are eligible to work anywhere in the United States. Although you can work for the project in which you have invested, you should note that your job, and that of any family who immigrated with you, will not count for EB-5 job creating purposes. You do not have to work for the project in which you invested. However, you must demonstrate a "management function" and this will be different in a direct EB-5 than in a regional center project.

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