What does the EB-5 regional center application involve?

It is advisable you have a U.S. person as a partner to attend to certain matters to form a regional center, such as business entity formation, application for EIN number with IRS, opening a bank account, etc. The regional center application process is generally complex and requires certain types of documentation. Please consult an experienced EB-5 immigration attorney for further details.

There is no limitation on a non-U.S. citizen implementing a regional center. From a practical standpoint, it might be beneficial to have a U.S. partner who can assist with things that might be problematic for foreign nationals, such as establishing a U.S. entity (corporation or LLC) for the regional center, obtaining a tax identification number, opening a U.S. bank account, etc. As for as the regional center application, it is extensive and requires a lot of information, plans, reports. You will need to retain an experienced immigration attorney who can put together the team of professionals needed to create those plans and reports, and then assemble the I-924 application package and submit it to the USCIS for consideration.

It may be best to have U.S. partners in the regional center entity (a U.S. corporation) you create. The New Commercial Enterprises associated with the center need to be U.S. businesses as well. The application process can be handled by qualified EB-5 counsel, such as assisting with the legal and financial infrastructures, assembling a team of professionals for business plans, economic reports, and offering documents (if applicable), and preparing and filing the actual application, forms, and support letters.

There is no prohibition to a non-citizen forming a regional center. However, the application needs extensive documentation.

A non-US citizen may own a regional center. The application is complex; you can read about basic requirements at the USCIS website - uscis.gov. You will need a qualified attorney to guide you through the process.