What kinds of investment activities qualify for EB-5?

First, the current amount is $1 million unless you in a targeted employment or rural area. Often the land cannot be used but if you do not have the 10 employees when you file, you have to prepare an EB-5-compliant business plan to prove in detail how the investment will create the jobs.

These start-up costs will qualify for a direct EB-5 investment. If your business is not in a designated targeted employment area, the investment threshold required is $1 million.

The cost of land purchasing is not likely to count while the restaurant construction will.

Yes, the $350,000 investment to purchase the land and a $200,000 investment to build the restaurant count for your EB-5 case.

Assuming your Japanese-style restaurant is located in a targeted employment area (TEA) and you are only required to invest $500,000 and create 10 direct jobs, you could certainly use a lawful source of funds that you used to purchase the land for $350,000, plus the $200,000 in construction costs. All of that should count toward the minimum investment.

USCIS has generally not considered land purchases as part of the EB-5 investments, as a land purchase by itself does not create jobs. Construction and operations are the most common uses of funds. Working with an immigration attorney and a team of professionals (here, an economist would be very helpful) can result in an approvable case.

If the purchase of the land and construction of the building is directly linked to the business in order to create jobs, then it would count toward the investment. You need to have a detailed business plan to show how the money invested in the land and construction of the business is creating jobs as well as how additional investment in the business itself will create at least 10 permanent jobs.

All of the start-up expenses you mentioned would count toward the EB-5 investment. Almost any business can be structured as an EB-5-compliant business. This should not be an issue. I advise you speak with a qualified EB-5 attorney for additional discussion.

Based on your email, if the restaurant is in TEA, then you can use all parts of the plan for EB-5. However, if it is not in TEA area, then it requires a $1-million investment for EB-5 and the creation of 10 jobs.

All the money you spend to create the business will count. Sounds like a good plan if you will hire 10 full-time employees (and most restaurants have more than that). Let me know if we can help you with this project. One caution: Our Congress is debating raising the amount required for EB-5 from $500,000 to $1,3 million, so it would be best to file the case as soon as you can. Best of luck!