In 1990, Congress created the EB-5 Program to stimulate the growth of the U.S. economy through job creation and capital investments by foreign national investors. The USCIS regulates this Program in which investors, including their spouses and unmarried children under age 21, are eligible to apply for a U.S. green card in exchange for a qualifying investment in a commercial enterprise in the U.S. and, with that investment, creates ten full-time jobs for eligible U.S. workers.
The USCIS requires each investor a standard minimum investment amounting to $1.8 million, which reduces to $900,000 if the investment made is in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA).
Though tagged as one of the easiest paths to obtaining a green card, the EB-5 process itself is more complex than it seems on the surface. From selecting a project to proving the source of funds used in the EB-5 investment to satisfying the job-creation condition, the whole process takes a lot of work and careful decision-making.
Several
stakeholders are involved, and specific kinds of effort by attorneys and other
parties, including eligible regional centers, help investors manage their
projects and guide them to reach their goals and obtain a U.S. green card.
What Is the Main Role of a Regional Center?
In 1992, Congress established the Regional Center Program under the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program. The USCIS defines EB-5 regional center as an economic unit, public or private, in the United States that promotes economic growth. USCIS also designates regional centers for participation in the Immigrant Investor Program.
As a "service agent organization" for investors and other stakeholders who want to succeed in the EB-5 Program, a regional center's primary role is managing job creation to help applicants comply with job creation requirements.
Instead of actively managing their EB-5 investment, investors can set up investment funds with regional centers and purchase equity stakes. The funds then are linked to the regional centers and result in creating jobs indirectly, thus, benefits investors to meet the creation of 10 full-time jobs easily.
The Best Regional Centers
Protecting the interests of investors comes first for the best EB-5 regional centers. A prospective investor must practice due diligence by doing his homework and research on the most suitable regional center that they are likely to be involved with. If you are on the fence about deciding which regional center to go with, thorough research about their background and main expertise will do the trick.
A regional center with the most experience in big commercial and real estate deals understands what the adjudicators are likely to do and can give clients better advice. On the other hand, a diversified, financially experienced regional center can help more in economic sectors to ensure a smooth path to an EB-5 investment venture's success.
With the EB-5 Program being in place for a long
time, navigating through the EB-5 process, which includes appeals and other
kinds of contingency planning, is more likely to become a threat to completing
a successful EB-5
investment. EB-5 attorneys involved must be savvy enough to help resolve
any issues that may arise along the way. Thus, it is advised to seek a regional
center that can secure a much steady path even when politics comes into play
with immigration rules and reformations.
