I am a Chinese EB-5 investor with an approved I-526. I could not move forward in the EB-5 process because of the backlog. I want to withdraw my petition and get my investment back for other uses. Assuming I can get my money back, will there still be negative consequences, such as difficulties to get EB-1 or EB-2 visas, if I choose to apply for those?
A withdrawal of your approved EB-5 petition will not result in any negative implications that can bar you from applying for any other immigrant visas such as EB-1 or EB-2 in the future.
Withdrawing should not impact your ability to get an EB-1 or EB-2. Having the I-526 could impact your ability to get non-immigrant visas. But what is your priority date? If you have a 2015 priority date, you might be fairly close and most projects do not refund other than in terms of the subscription agreement.
It's too late to withdraw your I-526, since it is already approved. If you choose not to move forward with that approval and file under another category, there will not be any negative consequences from this action. USCIS allows you to file for as many benefits for which you qualify at the time of filing.
There should not be, but no guarantee of money refund. See terms of documents you signed with the RC.
Whether you can get your money back depends on the agreements you signed with the investment you purchased. Withdrawing the petition should not affect your future EB-1 or EB-2 immigration applications.
I do not anticipate issues with future immigration processes if only the I-526 was filed, but I would want to discuss your full immigration history.
There is no negative consequences for you withdrawing the approved I-526 and it will not pose any difficulties in your future processing for permanent residence. It's understandable that plans change and the backlog I'm sure is causing many investors to re-think their plans.
There will be no negative repercussions if you decide to apply to immigrate through another EB category as suggested. However, you might be asked about your "non-immigrant intent" if you apply for certain non-immigrant visas in the future.
If the regional center indicated to you that you can get your money back even though your I-526 is approved, you should consider yourself lucky. With the filing of your original EB-5 application through the I-526 petition, you have already disclosed your immigrant intent. Since EB-1 and EB-2 are also immigrant intent applications, you should not have a problem.
A withdrawal on its own should not have negative consequences. Make sure you disclose it on any future application.
There should not be any negative consequences to withdraw an approved I-526 petition. We've done it for several clients who decided not to pursue immigration to the U.S. based on an approved I-526 petition for various reasons.
You should not have a problem applying for another visa category.
You always have the right to withdraw your approved I-526 petition. Objectively, there's no downside, provided you can re-coup your investment. It will not in any way negatively impact you from qualifying under the EB-1 or EB-2 immigrant visa classifications, should you apply for those. However, you might wait before you withdraw your EB-5 petition to see whether or not you have the possibility of qualifying under another preference classification.
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