I am going to invest in a franchise restaurant as a direct EB-5 investment (not through a regional center). The restaurant has part time employees already. If I turn the part time employees into full time employees by giving them more working hours, will their new status as full-time employees count toward the requirement of 10 full-time jobs? This is not a troubled business and I am not asking about job-sharing.
Answers
Ed Beshara
Immigration attorneysIn a direct EB-5 project, 10 full-time jobs have to be created and they have to be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents. These jobs have to be created within two and half years after the approval of the investor's I-526 petition. Please note that two employees fulfilling the hours of one full-time job is permissible.
John J Downey
Immigration attorneysThis could be troublesome. The statute requires new employment. If, for example, you simply moved your location and formed a new corporation but took your present employees and moved them, it would not be job creation. I would seek clarification from USCIS before I went forward.
Bernard P Wolfsdorf
Immigration attorneysIt is not easy to count existing jobs, unless you start a new venture. My recommendation is that you use a regional center, as that way you can partially count indirect jobs.
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