What kind of questions are asked during an I-485 interview? - EB5Investors.com

What kind of questions are asked during an I-485 interview?

Is it true that USCIS is calling all EB-5 investors for interviews in the I-485 application stage? What kind of questions are they asking?

Answers

Julia Roussinova

Julia Roussinova

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

You should reasonably expect to be asked questions about the EB-investment, regional center project, how jobs are to be created, source of funds, and possibly any inadmissibility issues to determine your eligibility to adjust status in the U.S. to a green card holder. It is highly advisable to have your lawyer prepare you for the interview because he or she knows the details of your case and immigration background.

BoBi Ahn

BoBi Ahn

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

The purpose of the interview is to verify/update info on the I-485, not to readjudicate the I-526. However, you should review the I-526 info regarding the investment structure and the basic information about the project progress and job creation, etc., and be ready and able to address questions about it.

Charles Foster

Charles Foster

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

It is true that USCIS is interviewing many, if not all, adjustment status applicants based upon approved employment-based petitions, including EB-5 investor petitions on Form I-485 interviews. Typically, the immigration examiner will go through the application for adjustments of status, verifying data and may ask questions about the applicant&#39s knowledge of his or her I-526 petition. You do not need to be an expert on the regional center or the project itself, but you should have the basic knowledge that an investor would, understanding the difference between the regional center and the project, the nature of the project and its business, understanding that the job creation may be based upon an economic studied model, that your investment funds are at-risk, that the project developer has not made a guarantee of a particular return nor a guarantee that your petition would be approved.

A Olusanjo Omoniyi

A Olusanjo Omoniyi

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

Yes, I-485 interviews are being conducted by the USCIS. The questions typically will focus on essentially the information related to applicant&#39s unique information in both the underlying petition (i.e.. I-526) and I-485 application itself. There is no specific checklist, but it is advisable that an applicant should be familiar with details of his or her own application.

Salvatore Picataggio

Salvatore Picataggio

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

When USCIS announced that they would be taking in all adjustment of status applicants for interviews, they also seemed to limit it to I-140 applicants, not I-526 (EB-5) applicants. So, for now, you may not be called in. However, if that changes, I would expect it to look like the consulate interview in terms of testing the applicant&#39s knowledge of the investment and project, and then the fairly standard admissibility questions any AOS applicant may face. Use an attorney to help you prepare for an interview!

Fredrick W Voigtmann

Fredrick W Voigtmann

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

USCIS is not interviewing all EB-5 investors. If an EB-5 investor is interviewed for his or her adjustment of status application, the questions asked by USCIS will be similar to those asked at U.S. consular immigrant visa interviews abroad: type and amount of investment, source of funds, location of EB-5 investment, in addition to all of the questions regarding admissibility to the United States. Any person going to an adjustment of status interview has the right to be represented by an attorney and have an attorney present at the interview.

Belma Demirovic Chinchoy

Belma Demirovic Chinchoy

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

USCIS&#39 new policy is that all employment-based adjustment applicants are to be interviewed. To date. this policy has not been fully implemented with regards to EB-5 applicants. Rather, USCIS is making a case-by-case determination and choosing to waive a majority of EB-5 applicant interviews. However, it is expected that most EB-5 applicants will be subject to an interview in the upcoming years. All questions on Form I-485 will be asked in the interview. In addition, the officer will likely ask regarding SOF, NCE, investment, role of investor in NCE management, terms of investment and so on - basically similar to consular IV interviews.

Lynne Feldman

Lynne Feldman

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

All investors who filed an I-485 will be called for interview.

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Bernard P Wolfsdorf

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

They are scheduling all employment cases, but many of our EB-5 cases have not been scheduled. An adjustment interview is like Judgment Day; they can ask anything. Many do not know about EB-5, so it is advisable to have an EB-5 lawyer prepare you so you know the project and can talk about job creation. Mainly, however, they looking to see if there is any out-of-status or unauthorized employment. If you have skeletons in the closet, that is what they looking for.

Jinhee Wilde

Jinhee Wilde

Immigration Attorneys
Answered on

They will ask about the project in which you invested, how you gathered your funds and possibly ask for documentation on that. Some have even asked why you chose the regional centers and whether you were given any incentives. These are all the questions you may have been asked at the consulate interview. As an investor, it is reasonable to be able to asked about the investment and how you gathered your funds legally, as they are part of the EB-5 eligibility.

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