The EB-5 American Dream

[Source: State Department/Wall Street Journal]

The surge for visas that were issued in the past 5 year through the USCIS EB-5 program are represented in the graph above. South Korea was the majority of visas issued back in 2008, but since that time China has made an extreme jump to the top representing 4/5 of the programs issued EB-5 visas. 

For more information on the USCIS EB-5 Immigration Investor program and investment options,

CONTACT EMPIRE STATE EB5 REGIONAL CENTER TODAY!

2815 Monroe Avenue, Suite 2100

Rochester, New York 14618

Tel: (866) 763-6515

                                              EMAIL HERE or WEBSITE HERE

 

 

EB-5 Stakeholder Meeting with USCIS and SEC - April 3, 2013

[Source: USCIS]


Dear Stakeholder,

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) invite interested individuals to participate in a stakeholder teleconference on April 3, 2013 at 3 p.m. (Eastern) to discuss the EB-5 Immigrant Investor program. During the engagement, subject matter experts from the SEC will discuss securities law compliance in the context of EB-5 regional centers and investments. Stakeholders will have an opportunity to ask the SEC questions at the end of the teleconference.

To Register:
Please click here to RSVP for this engagement. Be sure to complete and update your subscriber preferences. Once we receive your registration, we will send you a confirmation email with additional details. If you have any questions regarding the registration process, please contact the Public Engagement Division at Public.Engagement@uscis.dhs.gov.

To Join the Session:
On the day of, please use the information below to join the teleconference. We recommend that you call in 15 minutes before its start.

             Call-in Number: 1-888-989-5161               Passcode: EB-5

Please note this call is intended for stakeholders only. Members of the media who have inquiries should contact the USCIS Office of Communications at 202-282-8010. 

We look forward to engaging with you!

Kind regards,
Public Engagement Division
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) www.uscis.gov/outreach

EB-5 SEC Engagement Invitation

 

 

How long does it take to get money out of EB-5 investments?

[Source: Which EB5; Guest blog by attorney Anthony Olson]

One of the top questions in the mind of every prospective EB-5 investor is “How long does it take to get my money out of the EB-5 investment?” To answer that question, we have to examine that question from three primary perspectives: 1) immigration legal requirements for how long the investment must be maintained; 2) contractual legal restrictions; and 3) market, economic obstacles to cashing out of the investment.

USCIS requires that the $500,000 of investment funds and the program fee charged by the regional center be paid either into escrow, pending the approval or denial of the I-526 petition, or paid directly into the EB-5 enterprise before the I-526 petition can be filed. Therefore, the funds must be held in escrow or in the EB-5 project the entire time that the I-526 petition is pending, which can range from one month to one year. From recent experience in 2012 and 2013, the processing times have gone up from 4-6 months to 10-12 months. Once the I-526 petition is approved, USCIS requires that the investment be maintained until USCIS approves the I-829 petition to remove conditions from the conditional permanent residence. This means that we need to add another 3-6 months (sometimes longer) for consular processing of an immigrant visa or adjustment of status in the U.S. in order to begin the two-year period of conditional permanent residence. Then, in the final 90 days of the two-year period, the EB-5 investor must file the I-829 petition to remove conditions from the conditional permanent residence. It typically takes anywhere from 2 months to 10+ months for USCIS to decide the I-829 petition. So, if we figure the processing times on the longer end, with 10 months for the I-526 petition, 6 months for the consular processing, 2 years of conditional permanent residence, and 6 months for the I-829 petition, then we have 46 months, which is just 2 months short of 4 years. I generally tell clients to figure on 3.5 to 4 years to go through the EB-5 immigration process from start to finish, which is how long the client’s funds must be tied up due to immigration legal requirements.

Finishing reading the article here

What’s positive with the EB-5 Immigration Investor Program

[Source: Suzanne, www.lucidtext.com]

To close a week of complaining about what’s wrong with the EB-5 program, I’d like to conclude with pointing out that the EB-5 program has been functioning, despite the challenges.  Even in 2012, when many of the processing problems that we complain about came to a head, USCIS still approved 3,677 new EB-5 immigrant petitions and verified successful job creation and granted permanent residence to 736 investors. (See my FY2012 stats post for detail.)  Those numbers represent half a million to a million dollars per investor going into US businesses and 10+ verified jobs created per investor. Those numbers are not small, despite all the problems. You’ll recall that the US Department of State issued a record total of 7,641 EB-5 visas to investors and their families in FY2012, prompting fears that EB-5 visa usage might approach its limit for the first time ever...

Looking at the positives of the EB-5 Program continued 

 

USCIS releases draft EB-5 adjudication guidance

[Source: USCIS]

USCIS seeks your input on the draft policy memoranda listed below.

EB-5 Adjudications Policy Memorandum

Draft policy memoranda for comment are posted in the Feedback Opportunities page of uscis.gov, where stakeholders will be able to submit comments.These memos are drafts of proposed or revised guidance to USCIS Field Offices and Service Centers. They are not intended as guidance for the general public, nor are they intended to create binding legal requirements on the public. Until issued in final form, the draft memos do not constitute agency policy in any way or for any purpose.

Comment Process:  Please email all comments to opefeedback@uscis.dhs.gov.   Please include the following to make your comments clear:

• State the title of the relevant memo in the subject line of your message;
• Refer to a specific portion of the memo; 
• Explain the reason for any recommended change; and 
• Include data, information, or authority that supports the recommendation.

You must submit your comments before the closing date noted in the red box at the top of each policy memorandum. USCIS may distribute any comments received (including any personal information and contact information) on its public website or to those who request copies. By providing comments, you consent to their use and consideration by USCIS, and you acknowledge that your comments may become public. USCIS cannot guarantee that it will acknowledge or respond to any comments submitted.

See the Feedback Updates (also linked to the left) for the status of all policy memos and links to published memos.

Background and Additional Legal Information:  Field guidance documents are available for public review on USCIS's website (www.uscis.gov) as part of the Adjudicator's Field Manual (AFM).  In a continued effort to promote transparency and consistency in our operations, USCIS will periodically post policy memos for public comment to assist USCIS in improving immigration services.  USCIS will not post memos containing information that is law enforcement sensitive, confidential or otherwise protected from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.  USCIS is not required to solicit public comment on the draft policy memos under the Administrative Procedure Act. This informal comment process does not replace any statutory or other legal requirement for public comment on agency action.

China's billionaires on rise

[Source: WANG ZHUOQIONG - China Daily]

China has had more billionaires created by its stock markets this year than in the United States - 212 compared with 211 - a new survey revealed on Thursday.

According to the latest Hurun Global Rich List 2013, there were 1,453 people in the world with personal wealth of $1 billion or more at the end of January.

Another significant sign of more wealth being created in the East came with figures showing Asia was home to the highest number of billionaires, with 608, followed by 440 from North America and 324 from Europe, said Hurun researchers.

Among individual countries, the US and the Greater China area dominated with 408 and 357 respectively, followed by Russia, Germany and India. 

Between them, the US and China now have half of all billionaires on the planet.
Moscow, with 76 billionaires, is the billionaire capital of the world, followed by New York, Hong Kong, Beijing and London, according to the report. 

More on the Chinese billionaires article HERE