EB-5 questions, answered plainly

EB-5 is a U.S. immigrant visa category for foreign nationals who invest a required amount in a new commercial enterprise that creates at least 10 full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers. If the petition is approved and a visa is available, the investor and eligible family members may obtain conditional permanent residence. See the EB-5 program overview.

Source: USCIS: EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program (opens in a new tab)

A TEA is either a rural area (outside a metropolitan statistical area and outside any city or town with a population of 20,000 or more) or a high-unemployment area (census tract(s) with unemployment at least 150% of the national average unemployment rate). Investing in a TEA project allows the reduced minimum investment. Since the 2022 Act, USCIS rather than state governments makes TEA determinations.

Source: USCIS: About the EB-5 Visa Classification (opens in a new tab)

Your spouse and unmarried children under 21 may obtain status as derivatives of your case. A child who turns 21 during the process may lose eligibility unless an age protection applies, which depends on specific facts and dates. See planning for children and age and consult a qualified U.S. immigration attorney.

Source: USCIS: About the EB-5 Visa Classification (opens in a new tab)

For petitions filed on or after March 15, 2022, the minimum is $1,050,000, or $800,000 for an investment in a targeted employment area (TEA) or a qualifying infrastructure project. These amounts are scheduled for their first inflation adjustment for petitions filed on or after January 1, 2027; official adjusted amounts had not been published when this page was last reviewed. See the 2027 adjustment.

Source: USCIS: About the EB-5 Visa Classification (opens in a new tab)

The statute provides for the minimum amounts to be adjusted for petitions filed on or after January 1, 2027, and then every five years, based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). As of the last review of this page, the adjusted figures had not been officially published, so please confirm them directly with USCIS. Timing questions for your own filing are best discussed with a qualified U.S. immigration attorney.

Source: USCIS: EB-5 What's New (opens in a new tab)

No. EB-5 capital must be "at risk", meaning there must be a genuine possibility of loss, and USCIS decides each petition individually. No legitimate project, regional center or adviser can guarantee a green card, repayment or a return. Promises of guarantees are a warning sign; see understanding EB-5 investment risk.

Source: SEC and USCIS Investor Alert: Investment Scams Exploit Immigrant Investor Program (opens in a new tab)

In addition to the qualifying investment, regional center investors typically face a project administration fee and immigration attorney fees. As typical market estimates that vary by project and provider, administration fees are often around $50,000 to $80,000 and attorney fees around $30,000 to $40,000, roughly $80,000 to $120,000 together, before government filing fees and other costs such as translations, medical examinations, currency conversion and travel. These are not EB5 Circle's fees. Current USCIS fees are on the official fee schedule (opens in a new tab); see EB-5 costs for a fuller breakdown.

Source: USCIS: Fee Schedule (G-1055) (opens in a new tab)

Offerings usually plan to repay capital at loan maturity, through refinancing or from a sale of the asset, but a projected repayment date is an estimate, not a guarantee, because the capital must remain at risk. Loan extensions and the repayment order can delay or reduce repayment. If capital is returned before the immigration process is complete, it may need to be redeployed, under rules that depend on the petition's filing date. See exit strategies and repayment.

Source: USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part G (opens in a new tab)

Each investor's investment must generally create at least 10 full-time jobs (at least 35 hours per week) for qualifying U.S. workers. Direct (standalone) investments count only direct jobs. Regional center investments may also count indirect and induced jobs, estimated using reasonable economic methodologies.

Source: USCIS: About the EB-5 Visa Classification (opens in a new tab)

For regional center investments, yes: indirect jobs estimated with reasonable economic methodologies may count, and under the post-2022 rules up to 90% of the required jobs may be indirect, subject to the applicable requirements. Direct (standalone) investments generally count only direct jobs created by the business. See EB-5 job creation explained.

Source: USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part G (opens in a new tab)

Yes. Investors must show that the invested capital was obtained through lawful means and generally document how it moved to the investment. Typical evidence can include tax returns, employment or business records, property sale documents and bank records. See our source of funds guide.

Source: USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part G (opens in a new tab)

Gifts and loans can be lawful sources of EB-5 capital when properly documented. For gifts, the donor's own lawful source is generally relevant. A loan used for the investment generally may not be secured by the assets of the business being invested in. See gifted and borrowed funds.

Source: USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part G (opens in a new tab)

A regional center investment is made through a project associated with a USCIS-designated regional center, is usually passive, and may count indirect and induced jobs; the investor files Form I-526E. A direct investment is usually an active role in a business, counts only direct jobs, and uses Form I-526. The Regional Center Program is authorized through September 30, 2027. See the comparison.

Source: USCIS: EB-5 Immigrant Investor Regional Centers (opens in a new tab)

USCIS designates regional centers (Form I-956) and reviews regional center project applications (Form I-956F). Approval of a project application concerns whether the project meets immigration requirements; it is not an assessment of the investment's merits, safety or likelihood of repayment. Each investor's own petition is still reviewed individually.

Source: USCIS: EB-5 Immigrant Investor Regional Centers (opens in a new tab)

No. EB5 Circle presents structured project information for education and discovery, but it does not verify, approve, endorse or certify any project. Please have any offering reviewed by your own qualified U.S. immigration attorney and licensed securities professional. Our due diligence questions may help.

The capital stack is the combination of financing in a project, ranked by who is repaid first: typically senior debt, then mezzanine or junior debt, then preferred equity and finally common equity. EB-5 capital is often pooled in a new commercial enterprise and lent to the project, frequently behind a senior bank loan, but it may also be equity or occasionally senior debt. There is no single required structure, so confirm the actual position from the offering documents. See the EB-5 capital stack.

The Visa Bulletin is a monthly publication of the U.S. Department of State showing which applicants may proceed in each immigrant visa category, based on priority date and country of chargeability. For EB-5, it lists the unreserved category and the reserved categories separately. Dates change monthly, so always check the current bulletin; see reading the Visa Bulletin.

Source: U.S. Department of State: Visa Bulletin (opens in a new tab)

Each fiscal year, 20% of EB-5 visas are reserved for rural investments, 10% for high-unemployment areas and 2% for infrastructure projects. Unused reserved visas carry over in the same category for one more fiscal year before becoming unreserved. Which category applies generally depends on how the project is classified; see reserved visa categories.

Source: 8 U.S.C. 1153 (INA section 203) (opens in a new tab)

EB-5 receives 7.1% of worldwide employment-based immigrant visas, and per-country limits apply. When demand from one country is high, as it has been for China and India, applicants born there can face backlogs in the unreserved category. Availability can change and cannot be guaranteed.

Source: U.S. Department of State: Visa Bulletin (opens in a new tab)

Under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, USCIS generally prioritizes the processing of petitions for rural investments, and 20% of EB-5 visas each fiscal year are reserved for rural projects. That can help, but it is not a guarantee of faster processing, approval or immediate visa availability, and a rural project is not automatically safer or more profitable. See rural vs. high-unemployment projects.

Source: H.R. 2471 (EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022) (opens in a new tab)

If you are physically in the U.S., you may be able to file Form I-485 (adjustment of status) together with or while your I-526 or I-526E is pending, if a visa is immediately available according to the USCIS chart for that month and you meet other requirements. While pending, you may apply for work and travel authorization. Eligibility depends on your immigration status history, so individual legal advice is essential; see concurrent filing.

Source: USCIS: Form I-485 (opens in a new tab)

Conditional permanent residence lasts 2 years. In the 90 days before the second anniversary, the investor files Form I-829 to remove conditions, generally showing the investment was sustained and the required jobs were created or will be within a reasonable time. If approved, the investor and derivative family members receive permanent residence without conditions.

Source: USCIS: Form I-829 (opens in a new tab)

Fees and processing times change, so EB5 Circle does not restate them. Current fees are listed on the USCIS fee schedule (opens in a new tab) and current estimates on the USCIS processing times page (opens in a new tab). Project sponsors may also charge administrative fees separate from the investment.

Source: USCIS: Fee Schedule (G-1055) (opens in a new tab)

It depends on the applicant, the forms involved, government workloads and visa availability for the applicant's category and country, so no timeline can be guaranteed. Our indicative EB-5 timeline sets out the stages in order for applicants inside and outside the United States. For current official estimates, see the USCIS processing times page (opens in a new tab).

Source: USCIS: Processing Times (opens in a new tab)

Regional center investors file Form I-526E and standalone (direct) investors file Form I-526. Once a visa is available, applicants abroad generally complete Form DS-260 for consular processing, while eligible applicants in the United States file Form I-485 to adjust status. After 2 years of conditional residence, the investor files Form I-829 in the 90 days before the second anniversary to remove conditions. See EB-5 forms and the filing process.

Source: USCIS: EB-5 Immigrant Investor Process (opens in a new tab)

Under the IRS green card test, a lawful permanent resident is generally a U.S. tax resident, and U.S. tax residents generally report worldwide income. Foreign financial accounts may also need to be reported, for example on an FBAR when their combined value exceeds $10,000 at any time in the year. Reporting does not necessarily mean additional tax. EB5 Circle does not give tax advice; please consult a qualified cross-border tax adviser and see U.S. tax obligations for EB-5 investors.

Source: IRS: Alien Residency – Green Card Test (opens in a new tab)

As of the last review of this page, the Regional Center Program is authorized through September 30, 2027. The statute protects petitions filed on or before September 30, 2026 from being affected by a future lapse; that date has now passed. Future reauthorization is up to Congress; see program authorization.

Source: H.R. 2471 (EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022) (opens in a new tab)

No. EB5 Circle provides educational information about the EB-5 program and structured project information. It is not a law firm, broker-dealer, investment adviser, regional center or tax adviser. If you would like personal advice, you can request a consultation to be connected with qualified professionals.