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Overview
Under section 203(b)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA),
8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(5), 10,000 immigrant visas per year are available
to qualified individuals seeking permanent resident status on the
basis of their engagement in a new commercial enterprise.
Of the 10,000 investor visas (i.e., EB-5 visas) available annually,
5,000 are set aside for those who apply under a pilot program involving
an CIS-designated “Regional Center.”
A "Regional Center:"
- Is an entity, organization or agency that has been approved
as such by the Service;
- Focuses on a specific geographic area within the United States;
and ,
- Seeks to promote economic growth through increased export
sales, improved regional productivity, creation of new jobs,
and increased domestic capital investment.
" Alien investors" must:
- Demonstrate that a "qualified investment" (see below)
is being made in a new commercial enterprise located within an
approved Regional Center; and,
- Show, using reasonable methodologies, that 10 or more jobs
are actually created either directly or indirectly by the new
commercial enterprise through revenues generated from increased
exports, improved regional productivity, job creation, or increased
domestic capital investment resulting from the pilot program.
- Need Help? Call us at -
Orlando, FL (407)-574-7024
Naples, FL (239)-643-5529
Eligibility
Permanent resident status based on EB-5 eligibility is available
to investors, either alone or coming with their spouse and unmarried
children. Eligible aliens are those who have invested -- or are
actively in the process of investing -- the required amount of
capital into a new commercial enterprise that they have established.
They must further demonstrate that this investment will benefit
the United States economy and create the requisite number of full-time
jobs for qualified persons within the United States.
In general, "eligible individuals" include those:
1. Who establish a new commercial enterprise by:
- creating an original business;
- purchasing an existing business and simultaneously or subsequently
restructuring or reorganizing the business such that a new commercial
enterprise results; or
- expanding an existing business by 140 percent of the pre-investment
number of jobs or net worth, or retaining all existing jobs in
a troubled business that has lost 20 percent of its net worth
over the past 12 to 24 months; and
2. Who have invested -- or who are actively in the process
of
investing -- in a new commercial enterprise:
- at least $1,000,000, or
- at least $500,000 where the investment is being made in a "targeted
employment area," which is an area that has experienced
unemployment of at least 150 per cent of the national average
rate or a rural area as designated by OMB; and
3. Whose engagement in a new commercial enterprise will
benefit the United States economy and:
- create full-time employment for not fewer than 10 qualified
individuals; or
- maintain the number of existing employees at no less than
the pre-investment level for a period of at least two years,
where the capital investment is being made in a "troubled
business," which is a business that has been in existence
for at least two years and that has lost 20 percent of its net
worth over the past 12 to 24 months.
- Need Help? Call us at -
Orlando, FL (407)-574-7024
Naples, FL (239)-643-5529
For a full description of the requirements, see 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(5)
and 8 C.F.R. § 204.6.
How Do I......Seek Status as an Immigrant
Investor
In order to seek status as an immigrant investor, you must file CIS Form
I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur. The Form I-526 must
be filed with supporting documentation which clearly demonstrates that
the individual’s investment meets all requirements, such as:
- establishing a new commercial enterprise,
- investing the requisite capital amount,
- proving the investment comes from a lawful source of funds,
- creating the requisite number of jobs,
- demonstrating that the investor is actively participating
in the business; and, where applicable,
- creating employment within a targeted employment area.
For a full description of the requirements, see 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(5)
and 8 C.F.R. § 204.6.
...Obtain Status as a Conditional Resident
Once the Form I-526 is approved, immigrant investors may obtain status
as a conditional resident by:
- Filing CIS Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence
or Adjust Status, if residing within the United States; or,
- Applying for an immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate abroad,
if residing outside the United States.
...Become a Permanent Resident Based on Investment
In order to become a lawful permanent resident, eligible investors
must file a CIS Form I-829, Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove
Conditions. Form I-829 must be filed within 90 days before the
second anniversary of an Alien Investor’s admission to the
United States as a conditional resident.
For a description of the requirements for removal of conditions,
see 8 C.F.R. § 216.6.
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