EB-5 REGIONAL CENTER INVESTOR:
There are essentially two types of EB-5 investors which are the “individual investor” and the regional center investor. For historical reasons, the “individual investor” is not utilized at this time and it is unlikely the Immigration Service will change its perception of that category. Therefore, the only EB-5 option we have is to invest in a regional center.
A regional center is a business created by others which specializes in a particular type of business or activity. This can include anything which creates jobs either directly or indirectly and also creates a profit. There are dozens and dozens of regional centers which have been created throughout the United States. All of them can be “googled” to find out what they do, how they do it, who the principals are, what kind of return on investment they have as well as the number of people who have obtained permanent residence through that regional center. Therefore, the best thing to do is to research the regional center that the investor will be most interested in. Please note that the investor has no involvement with the business whatsoever and the investment amount is not a loan. The regional center has no obligation to return the money and if there are funds given to the investor they will only be as a result of the company making a profit.
If the EB-5 investor invests in a regional center, he or she then has a right to apply for permanent residence based on that investment. If the investment is approved, the investor receives permanent residence on a conditional basis for two years, including a spouse and any children under the age of 21 who are not married. Two years after the conditional permanent residence is granted, the investor and his or her family will again petition the Immigration Service, this time for the removal of conditions. Assuming that the regional center is still “in business”, even if it is not making a profit, the conditions will be removed and “permanent” permanent residence will be granted.
As with all of the investment categories under U.S. immigration law, Tidwell, Swaim prides itself on handling the complexities, legal requirements and business decisions which are required for a successful case. We have partnerships with law firms and data collection companies to assist us in either establishing a new regional center or assisting investors who wish to apply for permanent residence through an existing regional center. Finally, although the EB-5 regional center investment can be either $1,000,000 or $500,000, the most successful investments, from a financial and immigration standpoint, are the $1,000,000 investments. There are a limited number of $500,000 EB-5 regional centers which have been successful but they must be investigated very carefully to ensure that they will remain in business long enough to remove the conditions from the permanent residence.