The EB-5 regulation changes went into effect on November 21, 2019. The significant change to the new EB-5 rule is an increase in the minimum investment amount from $500,000 to $900,000 in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA) and $1 million to $1.8 million for the standard investment amount (non-TEA). Since the inauguration, This is the first increase in the minimum investment amount since 1990 when the EB-5 investor visa program was created by Congress. The increased amount is to account for inflation and it is scheduled to be adjusted for inflation every 5 years moving forward.

Under a new rule published by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the other key changes include the following:

TEA Designation Reforms

The new methodology is applied for determining high unemployment areas (TEA) and individual state is no longer able to designate TEA; it will be reviewed and determined by DHS. This revision will likely lower the number of available projects located within TEAs, but it will help ensure TEA designations are done fairly and consistently, preventing gerrymandering and fraud.

Clarification for Removing Conditions on Green Card

The new regulations clarify that certain family members who are not included in a principal investor’s petition must independently file to remove conditions on their permanent residence. The rule improves the adjudication process for removing conditions by providing flexibility in interview locations and to adopt the current USCIS process for issuing Green Cards.

Retention of the Priority Date of EB-5 Petitions

The final rule offers greater flexibility to immigrant investors who have a previously approved EB-5 immigrant petition. When they need to file a new EB-5 petition, they generally now will be able to retain the priority date of the previously approved petition.

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Investment Amount Increase

The minimum investment amount will increase from $500,000 (TEA) and $1 million (non-TEA) to $900,000 and $1.8 million respectively. The increased amount is to account for inflation. The minimum investment amounts are scheduled to be adjusted for inflation every five years moving forward. 

TEA Designation Reforms

Projects located in TEAs (Targeted Employment Areas) appeal to investors because they allow for a lower minimum investment amount. The final rule includes reforms to the definitions and requirements for determining a TEA. These changes which will likely lower the number of available projects located within TEAs. The rule also shifts the authority to designate TEAs from the individual states to the USCIS.

Priority Date Retention

The EB-5 regulation changes allow for certain investors filing a second petition to keep their priority date from when their original petition was properly filed.  

Clarification for Removal of Conditions

The final rule clarifies that certain family members not included in the original petition must file independently for the removal of conditions to their permanent resident card. 

Other Minor Changes  

Visit the federal register to read the published final EB-5 regulation changes in full detail.

These changes will go into effect on November 21, 2019. If you are planning to apply for the EB-5 visa in the near future, now is the time to get started!

Contact us for more information on how to begin your EB-5 visa application.

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One of the common ideas that comes up as a possible solution is dual citizenship. While this sounds like a good idea, it is not a solution. Unfortunately for some, the EB-5 visa has to be applied for under your country of birth. That means that if an investor was born in India and also has Canadian citizenship, they are still subject to the recent backlog.

However, there is a way around this for some investors. The EB-5 visa application covers the applicant, spouse, and unmarried children under 21. The application can also be filed by either spouse. Therefore, if an Indian family is applying for the EB-5 visa, and one spouse was born in Canada for example, they can apply under the Canadian spouse’s name. The visas would then be counted toward Canada’s allotted EB-5 visas, and they would be exempt from the India retrogression. 

Visit USRCGroup.com for more information on the EB-5 visa and frequently asked questions. 

Stay tuned for more EB-5 visa and US Regional Center Group updates!

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The U.S. Office of Management and Budget completed its review of the proposed regulatory changes of TEA and investment requirements on June 27, 2019. (See Official Announcement) The current minimum investment amount is $500,000 when working with a regional center. However, this amount will likely be changing to up to $1.35 million for projects located in a TEA and $1.8 million for projects not located in a TEA.

There is no set date yet on when this change will be finalized. Stay tuned for more updates on EB-5 investment changes as things continue.

If you are planning on applying for the EB-5 visa, now is the time to get started. Contact us for more information on how to begin your EB-5 visa application. 

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Raj had been looking into multiple regional centers to find the best fit to help him pursue this immigration path. He was aware of the talk of fraud that often tarnishes the EB-5 visa’s reputation, and he wanted to make sure to work with a regional center that was fully compliant with all of the USCIS and U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations in order to avoid the mistakes that people sometimes make when attempting to cut corners. During his research he came across regional centers that sold securities using broker-dealers and some that did not. When Raj asked the U.S. Regional Center Group about this, he was informed that the SEC regulations require the use of a broker-dealer to sell securities, and once Raj learned this, he was easily able to narrow down his list of potential regional centers to work with.

He then started looking at the project history of each regional center. He wanted to work with a regional center that had a good track record of successful visa applications and whose projects were structured to maximize visa success. Raj also wanted a regional center that was not owned by the real estate developer of the project. This was to prevent any potential conflicts of interest and ensure that the regional center would have his best interests at heart as the EB-5 investor. After getting basic information from a USRC Group representative, Raj was connected with a broker-dealer who went over the financial details of the investment and available projects. USRC Group satisfied all of Raj’s criteria for a regional center; he decided to apply for his EB-5 visa through the U.S. Regional Center Group.

Stay tuned to find out the next steps that Raj took, with the help of the U.S. Regional Center Group, to pursue his American dream.

*Raj is a fictional investor based on the experiences of multiple clients of the U.S. Regional Center Group

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