Questions and Answers > EB-5 Investments

What are the EB-5 visa investment requirements?

I was told that the investment requirement(s) were a minimum of $500,000 USD for an individual applicant AND up to $2,500,000 USD for a family of 4 or more. Why do the figures differ on your site? Secondly, how long must the investment remain in the qualified/approved corporation - before being required to be paid back? And at what rate is typically acceptable on the advancement of funds (assuming it goes in as a loan)? Once approved for funding (how long typically does that take?), and assuming the funding is in place, how long before the corporation can expect to receive the funds?

Answers

• Julia Roussinova

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on February 5, 2013

  If you invest in a project within an approved Regional Center in a targeted employment area (rural area or high unemployment area) or in a troubled business, the minimum investment per investor is $500,000. You family consisting of immediate family members (spouse and children under age 21 at the time of filing of your I-526 petition) are included in the principal investor''s I-526 petition. They are not required to invest. If you have extended family members who wish to immigrate, then they must qualify independently for EB-5 program. They may not be included in your I-526 petition. If the investment is in a new commercial enterprise outside a targeted employment area, the minimum required investment is increased to $1,000,000 per investor. Investment must typically remain committed until your I-829 petition to remove conditions is approved. Investment characteristics and exit strategies of each project differ in each regional center. You should conduct your own due diligence or have your immigration attorney inquire before you decide to choose a particular regional center and project within a regional center.

• Laura Danielson

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 27, 2012

  The family (spouse and children under age 21) of an investor will be qualified as ''dependents'' and family members do not need to make any additional investment. To qualify for the lower investment amount of $500,000, the employment must be created in a targeted employment area. Therefore the EB-5 investment must either be in a rural area (located outside any standard metropolitan statistical area or within any cities with a population of 20,000 or more) or in a high unemployment area (with an unemployment rate of at least 150 percent of the national average). Rates and terms of these investments vary from regional center to regional center and are set by the parties. Remember that these are ''at risk'' equity investments and there can be no guaranteed requirement that the money be paid back. The investor needs to look for a secure investment that will provide an acceptable rate of return and an exit strategy that the investor is comfortable with. I always recommend that my clients seek the assistance of a licensed securities advisor to assist in this process, as choosing the wrong project can result in disastrous financial and immigration consequences. At minimum the investment should remain in the project until the investor has had his/her conditional status removed. Many loans are set at five years in order to allow enough time for the investors to receive approval of their initial green card applications as well as their applications to remove the conditions from that status. The timing of the release of funds to the project is once again determined by the parties. Many projects include escrow agreements that require that the I-526 applications be approved before any funds are released.

• Jor Law

  RC Creator

  Answered on December 26, 2012

  A lot of questions here, so it''s best to contact a proper provider, such as Homeier & Law. Minimum is $500,000 for each person in a TEA ($1M otherwise), except that one''s spouse and children under 21 can come in under the same $500,000. Therefore, a family of 4 could come in for just $500k in the right circumstances. The investment must typically say in the company for so long as the green card still has conditions. In reality, this means the investment must stay there for a minimum of 3-5 years. Rate for the advancement of funds varies dramatically based on project. Many deals only offer investors 1%, but there are some that offer much higher returns. As for when the corporation gets the funds, that also depends. It''s quite flexible there, but really depends on what they can convince the investor to agree to.

• Mahsa Aliaskari

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The minimum investment amount depends on the location of the project. The investment must be either $1 million or if the location of the project qualifies as Targeted Employment Area, then the investment amount would be $500,000. Only one family member would need to make the investment, all spouse and children under 21 would obtain their legal permanent resident status as dependents of the principal investor. By regulation, there can be no guaranteed return of funds. Most projects will have exit strategies in place that take effect after 5 years. The terms of the investment will differ from project to project, there is no regulatory requirements associated with the terms, except for a ban on redemption clauses. When the funds will be released to the project will also differ from project to project. Some projects are set up with the funds going into escrow and remaining in escrow until the investors I-526 is approved. Others will have the funds immediately available to the project, this option is more rare.

• Louis M Piscopo

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The minimum investment for a ‘Green Card’ through the EB-5 program is $1 million, unless the business investment qualifies for the $500,000 investment based on its location (ex. a Regional Center, or qualifying high unemployment area, or rural area). The EB-5 program allows the investor, their spouse and their unmarried children under the age of 21 to obtain a ‘Green Card.’ Therefore, a family of 4 or more who fit within those parameters could all receive their Green Card based on one $500,000 investment. An EB-5 investor, if approved, will received a 2 year conditional Green Card. By the end of the 2 years the USCIS requires that the full investment has been made, and the required 10 jobs have been created. If so, they everyone receives a permanent Green Card. As to your other questions regarding funding of the corporation, unfortunately, I do not understand what you mean in terms of the EB-5 visa process.

• Taher Kameli

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The requirement is minimum $500,000.00 The amount does NOT go up based on the number of people in the family.

• Jinhee Wilde

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  You have been given erroneous information. There are only 2 amounts that EB-5 investor must meet: $1 million or $500,000 if the EB-5 project/business is in TEA (high unemployment area). Under the EB-5 program, the principal investor and his/her spouse and all the children under 21 could obtain permanent residency with one investment. The rules require that the EB-5 investment must continue to be active until the investor obtains the Removal of Condition (I-829) approval, which could be 4-5 years after the initial investment is made. I am not clear what you mean by assuming the funding is in place, how long before the corporation can expect to receive the funds. Please call me to discuss further.

• Olivia Orza

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The minimum investment amount is 1million USD or 500,000 USD if you are investing through a regional center or the project is located in a targeted employment area (high unemployment or rural area. ) This amount remains the same regardless of how many dependents (spouse and children) the investor has. The entire amount has to be invested and considered at risk before the I-526 petition is filed. I am not really understanding the rest of the questions.

• Charles H Kuck

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The $500,000 covers spouse and children under 21 in the same family. Anyone outside that parameter requires additional $500,000 investments. If you need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

• Stephen Berman

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  500,000 for regional center, $1 million for non regional centers.

• Jennifer Parser

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  $1,000,000 direct investment in a commercial enterprise involving financial risk in which the investor is actively involved is required. $500,000 may qualify through a Regional Center making an investment in a targeted employment area (TEA) or rural area. A TEA is where the unemployment rate is 150% above the national average. There is never a requirement of $2.5M for a family of 4. The above numbers apply to and include the investor, his/her spouse and all children under the age of 21. There can never be a guarantee of return on investment or the EB-5 visa will fail. All monies are placed at financial risk with no guarantee of return. To remove the conditional green card status, the US immigration service checks that the investment is still active and the required 10 US workers are still employed by the enterprise in which the investor has invested after two years. The investment should not be a loan. Any guarantee of return on investment will result in the EB-5 visa applicant being denied a green card. Your last two questions are unclear. It takes about 9 months to get the conditional green card once the application is filed which includes proof of the investment, so active investment and hiring or planning to hire should occur prior to filing. Then 2 years later the conditionality is removed by proving the investment (and US jobs) are still in place at which point the green card becomes permanent.

• Steve Garmo

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  An evaluation (cost $1,000) needs to be done to determine the best options for you. I am attaching a checklist of items needed to complete the evaluation. Feel free to contact me should you have any questions.

• Ed Beshara

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  Whether it is a direct EB5 investment or a EB5 Regional Center investment the minimum investment requirement is $1Million Dollars or if the US business is in a TEA ( Target Employment Area ), the investment requirement is $5000,000.00 Dollars.The required investment covers all the family, husband,wife,and minor children under 21 years old.The funds remain as an investment on the average for 5 years as a loan.The loan rate varies and can be at the rate of 1%. The investment funds are either transferred to an Escrow account or the New Commercial Enterprise and is either committed at the time of transfer or at the time the investors petition I 526 is either filed or approved by the USCIS.

• Anthony Ravani

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  EB-5 law requires $1,000,000.00 direct investment. Investor, his/her spouse and children under 21 years old will get Permanent Residency (Green Card) in the USA. However, if the Investor is willing to place his/her investment into a Regional Center, then the investment is $500,000 for the exact same benefits. But for Regional Center investment the fund ($500,000) must stay in the Regional Center for at least 5 years.

• Clem Turner

  Securities Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  Your $500,000 investment would be enough to procure a green card for you, your spouse and all your children under 21. Any information contrary to this is incorrect. Typically your would put your investment (or a portion of it) in escrow while you completed and filed your I-526 application for a conditional green card. This application takes 4-6 months to process (according to USCIS). Upon your acceptance, the money (or the remainder of it) would be released to the company. They typically pay anywhere from 0.5% to 3% as "interest" on the funds. Your funds must remain with the company until your I-829 Application (to remove the I-526 conditions and make your green card permanent) has been adjudicated, which is typically between 2 and 3 years. This period can go on for much longer, however. There is no regulatory requirement that the funds must be paid back in 5 years, but this is typically the time period when companies expect to repay your funds. If your money is held more than 5 years, a few companies will offer a higher rate of interest. I hope this was helpful.

• Neville M Leslie

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  It is $500,000-$1,000,000 depending on the project. That covers the applicant, spouse and children under 21. Regional centers pay varying rates of interest typically ranging from 1%-5%. The principal is typically returned after 5 years. Funding is at the time the application is submitted.

• Reza Rahbaran

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on December 21, 2012

  The minimum investment is $500,000.00 for the investment. The petitioner may bring his/her spouse and any children under 21 under a single petition. Other family members or children over 21 must file a separate petition in their own right. Your investment must remain until the conditions on your green card are removed.

• David Hirson

  Immigration Attorney

  Answered on July 9, 2012

  The minimum, based on location is $500,000. The principal investor ($50,000) will include spouse and unmarried children under 21. Children who do not qualify will each have to make a separate investment. Each investment is on its own terms. You will have to see what you are investing your equity into. It cannot be a loan. The entity into which you invest may make a loan to the project and then an interest rate and a time for repayment will become more clear. The notes are generally for 5 - 6 years and there is very little interest paid. Once we have all the documents including a very detailed report of the lawful source of the investment funds with translations into English we take a short time to finalize the filing with USCIS. Once filed the goal time for USCIS is 4 moths. Experience at this time is closer to 6 - 8 months for a decision. Depending on the transaction type, the funds can be received by the commercial enterprise immediately or via an escrow in about 6 -8 moths. Each deal will have the basis for releasing funds to the project.