When I invest in an EB-5 regional center and go to the United States, can I buy a house there? Or are there risks that I will have to go back to my home country? If there are risks, when can I be sure that I will get to remain in the United States?
Your questions are confused. You want to apply for the EB-5 visa through houses? Or after you make the investment in the EB-5 program, you want to buy a house for residence? You can buy a house in the United States as a foreigner at any time.
Your U.S. residence vests permanently upon the approval of the I-829.
You can buy a house in the United States whenever you want. Owning a house and your immigration status are separate issues. Conservatively, it will not be until obtaining U.S. citizenship that you can be really sure you can remain in the United States, as there is the opportunity for denial of the I-526, of the visa, of the I-829, and it is even possible to get a green card revoked.
You can buy a house whenever you wish, but if you want to be safe, you could wait until after you receive your conditional lawful permanent residence. If you wanted to be ultra-conservative and be sure that your risk is at or near zero, you could wait until after your condition is removed before you buy a house.
When your EB-5 application is accepted you will receive a conditional green card. After two years, you will seek to remove the conditions; once you do that, then you receive the permanent resident card. That would be the safest time to invest in property, etc.
Safest would be when the I-829 is approved, but most people purchase houses when they get the two year green card, expecting that the I-829 will follow unless the project does not perform.
You can buy a house in the United States any time even if you have not invested in the United States. The expectation of all investors, like yourself, is that they want to enter the United States based upon their investment and the granting of a conditional green card which allows them to stay in the United States. There is a requirement though that to obtain a permanent green card, the investor's fund must create at least 10 jobs during the two year period when an investor is on the conditional green card and eventually change to the permanent green card. There are several reasons an investor may not qualify to stay in the United States beyond their conditional green card, and this is specifically for lack of a permanent green card. With regards to EB-5, if the investment fails to create 10 jobs as required, an investor may be denied a permanent green card and required to leave the United States. However, even in spite of this unusual occurrence, an investor's ownership of real estate property in the United States will not be affected. Consult an EB-5 attorney to further address your concerns on these issues.
There can be no guarantees. You need to due due diligence before you invest. A good lawyer can help. If you want 100 percent no risk, you are only 100 percent safe after the I-829 is approved.
There is no guarantee until you are granted U.S. citizenship. Until then, you are always subject to removal.
Waiting until the I-526 petition for immigrant investor is approved would be the prudent time to make the move to the United States.
You can buy a house in the United States without a visa, so the EB-5 program does not impact that. Until you receive your unconditional green card, (two years after you receive your conditional green card), then you are considered a permanent resident and will no longer be subject to the requirements of the EB-5 program. You are still subject to U.S. immigration deportation law though (for example, if you commit a crime you may be deported even with a green card).
