Questions and Answers > EB-5 Investments

How can two family members invest in the same project and both receive an EB-5 visa?

My mom is thinking of applying for an EB-5 visa. If we both become partners in the new commercial enterprise and invest $1 million in total, do we each get an EB-5 visa?

Answers

• Julia Roussinova

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on August 11, 2017

  This is certainly possible. Family members may be EB-5 investors in a single new commercial enterprise. If the NCE is principally doing business in the designated Targeted Employment Area (TEA), you may each invest $500,000 from lawful source of funds and you must each create at least 10 full-time direct positions for qualifying employees to qualify for EB-5 visa for each of you. If the NCE is not principally doing business in the TEA, then the investment amount for each of you is $1 million.

• A Olusanjo Omoniyi

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on August 2, 2017

  This is possible depending on the nature of your business. Based on your fact pattern, for instance, your idea will likely work in a direct investment in which each of you put $500,000 investment in a new venture. The venture of this nature now has two investors but, each of you must fulfill the EB-5 requirements, the pooled investment must result in at least 20 jobs within 2 years by the time your I-829 is being filed. Also, the source(s) of the investment funds must be legal. Last but not the least, the location of the new venture must be in a designated area where $500k is the required amount (i.e. the Targeted Employment Area - TEA or "rural area" designation). Advisably, consult an EB-5 attorney before you put your plan into action.

• Phuong Le

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on August 1, 2017

  There should be no issues at all. Each family member has to prove their lawful source of funds and otherwise be eligible for EB-5 but there should be no issue with both of them investing in the same project (provided there are at least two available slots).

• BoBi Ahn

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 31, 2017

  If each of you invests the requisite minimum investment amount (ie., $500,000 each if the business is located in a targeted employment area, or $1 million each if not) and each creates 10 new jobs, and meets the remaining burden of proof for EB-5 investor processing, then, yes, you can both apply using the same project.

• Anthony Korda

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 31, 2017

  Provided each investor invests the required minimum amount and each investment will create 10 new jobs, there is no reason why family members cannot invest in the same project.

• Shahzad Q Qadri

  RC Creator

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  It certainly is possible. You would have to structure the transaction carefully and ensure that you create sufficient jobs (i.e. 20 full time jobs) to make sure that the application is successful.

• Lynne Feldman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  If the project is in a Targeted Employment Area then, yes, that can work. Are you doing your own project or investing through a regional center? If the latter, most RCs have administrative fees of $35,000-$50,000 on top of the investment plus attorney fees.

• Jinhee Wilde

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  We have many families investing together and filing multiple cases at the same time because they have either grown children or children who may age-out while waiting for the visa numbers to be current. Because the funds may come from one source, it will not be more difficult to prepare and file multiple cases.

• Fredrick W Voigtmann

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  Yes, as long as the project is located in a targeted employment area (TEA) and creates at least 20 full-time positions for qualifying workers (10 for each family member investor).

• Bernard P Wolfsdorf

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  If you are under 21 years of age at the time of filing and you are not from a backlogged country such as China (or possibly Vietnam), you should be able to immigrate with your mom if she is the principal applicant. If you are from one of these countries, consult with a specialist and recognize you may have to each make separate investments, which presently can be in the $500,000 range each.

• Charles Foster

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  Yes, more than two family members may invest in the very same project; there is no requirement that either of you have a majority interest in same. You each can invest the minimum $1,000,000 unless your project is located in a Targeted Economic Area (TEA), which would be a minimum investment of $500,000 each. If you can establish each investment has each created at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers, then you both could in invest in the same project.

• Ying Lu

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  It depends on where you invest. For projects located in a targeted employment area, the minimum investment is $500,000. Therefore, if each of the two families invests $500,000, both families can apply for the EB-5 visa. However, if the project is outside of a TEA, the minimum investment amount will be $1 million for one family. A family includes petitioner, spouse and unmarried children under 21 years old.

• Raymond Lahoud

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  Thank you for your EB-5 investment visa question. Yes, you can pool the investment funds to obtain conditional lawful permanent resident status. Each of the partners, however, must make a required minimum investment of $1 million, or $500,000 if the new commercial enterprise is in a targeted employment area (rural area or high unemployment area)should each of the partners seek their own separate EB-5 investor visa.

• Steffanie J Lewis

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  Yes, two members of one family can invest individually. If you are over 21 years of age or are a Chinese national, you each may wish to independently invest and seek U.S. permanent residency. Until there is a change in the minimum investment, you each may invest $500k in a new commercial enterprise for a total of $1 million. You will also need to anticipate additional related administrative and legal fees.

• Stephen Berman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 28, 2017

  If you do $500,000 each, and it is in a TEA, yes. Otherwise, no.