There is no shortage of U.S. immigration options marketed as “safe.” In practice, many are either difficult to access, tied to sponsorship, or designed for temporary stays. Even strong candidates can face lottery risk, long backlogs, shifting employer needs, or visa categories that do not lead cleanly to permanent residence. For investors who want a direct, stable path to living in the United States long term, EB-5 stands out because it is built around one clear outcome: U.S. permanent residency for the investor and eligible family members.
That long-term outcome matters when a family is planning around children. For investors with kids under 21, timing is especially important. Families want their children to have the ability to study in the United States, build early career experience, and choose where to live—without being limited by an employer sponsor, a visa renewal cycle, or a narrow set of work permissions. EB-5 can align the immigration strategy with a family’s education and life timeline in a way that many temporary visas cannot.
That is also why it is so useful for new investors to learn directly from people who have already made the EB-5 decision. Investors who have gone through the process can explain what pushed them away from options like H-1B or E-2, how they weighed uncertainty and control, and what “freedom” actually meant in practical terms—work flexibility, family stability, and the ability to plan years ahead. Their experience turns a complicated choice into a clearer strategy.
EB5AN has built an investor testimonial library with more than 20 full-length interviews for exactly this reason. We wanted prospective investors to hear the real decision-making process from real families—what they considered, what they worried about, and what ultimately made EB-5 the right fit. Few firms in the EB-5 industry have gone to this level of detail to educate investors with first-hand perspectives.
This post is the 11th installment in our series revisiting the most compelling interviews in our library, each focused on one core part of the EB-5 journey. Here, the focus is simple: why EB5AN investors chose the EB-5 visa. In the excerpts that follow, you will hear how investors compared EB-5 to other paths, what they were trying to protect their families from, and what they were trying to gain—then we will break down the practical lessons you can apply to your own decision.
We also invite you to watch these highlights in the following compilation video featuring our investors’ key responses.
Watch All EB-5 Investor Testimonials
Escaping Temporary Visas (e.g., H-1B) and Uncertainty
Escaping Multi-Decade Backlogs for Indian Families
Family Goals and EB-5
Uncertainty of Non-Immigrant Visas (H-1B, E-2, etc.)
Success Stories of EB5AN Investors—Yours Could Be Next
Escaping Temporary Visas (e.g., H-1B) and Uncertainty
“I’m from India. Unfortunately, my H-1B runs out, so I needed to either (1) find a new job or (2) somehow convince people in banking that they should sponsor me for a Green Card from the get-go. Usually these things in investment banking happen only based on your good performance, and very, very few employers agree right off the bat to sponsor you for your Green Card. So, unfortunately, given what was going on in the market, it was obviously very difficult for me to find another job at that time.
And at the same time, I also needed to make sure that I stayed in the U.S.”
— Siddharth, Twin Lakes Rural
For investors like Siddharth, the problem is that temporary status can collapse overnight. One layoff, one expiring renewal window, or one job search in a weak market can force a family into a scramble with no leverage. In that context, H-1B offers no peace of mind.
“I think the reason why I arrived at the decision to go through EB-5 is that the firm that I used to work for back in 2022 had several rounds of layoffs due to the market environment, and I was a part of that unfortunate event. At the same time, my I-140 process was stalled because of this event.”
— Siddharth, Twin Lakes Rural
Employer-based cases can look stable until they are not. Siddharth’s point is simple: even if you do everything right, your plan can still be dependent on forces you cannot control—such as your company’s layoffs. That is why investors describe EB-5 as a “permanent solution” rather than another extension strategy, especially after watching an I-140 path stall through no fault of their own.
Escaping Multi-Decade Backlogs for Indian Families
“We’ve been here since 2017 in Milwaukee with [my wife] on the H-1B. Her company had sponsored her green card through EB-2.
But for a lot of people whose country of birth is India, the green card backlog for EB-2 is really huge. So the backlog, if nothing is done and the law does not change, can take up to 50 years or maybe even more than that. I don’t even know the actual number, but the estimates are 50 to 90 years for us to get an EB-2 green card.
Being on H-1B or H-4, you face different hardships from time to time because you have to go through renewals every three years. Otherwise, you’d be out of a job.
There were a lot of uncertainties which we were facing. Like I said, we’d been here a long time. We were part of the community, and the opportunities that the US offers are basically second to none. The job opportunities and career growth opportunities that you get over here are pretty much unmatched anywhere in the world. That was the reason why initially we moved to the US and decided to stay here.”
— Sid, Twin Lakes Rural
Sid is describing the core issue for many Indian nationals: the wait for Green Cards through EB-2 or H-1B is extremely long. When the backlog stretches into decades, everything becomes provisional—jobs, travel, housing decisions, and long-term commitments. EB-5 becomes attractive because it is one of the few options that does not require waiting for a decades-old priority date to become current—and Chinese and Indian nationals even get priority processing through rural projects.
“I’m Prakash Yaji from the southern part of India, closer to Bangalore. I’ve been in the U.S. for the last eight years. I’ve been on L-1, H-1B, and my wife is also on L-2 and H-4, etc. It’s been eight years of journey of this backlog. And then we started evaluating some of these options, because of being on H-1B and the EB-2 priority date is somewhere in like mid-2018. The wait time and the backlog was pretty long. And then we also have a U.S.-born daughter, so we didn’t want to be in the worry of the visa for so long”
— Prakash, Rocky River Rural
Prakash ties the backlog directly to his family’s goals. A long timeline is not just inconvenient; it changes the stakes when children’s futures are part of the decision. For many families, the question becomes whether to keep living in uncertainty or switch to an immigration path that is not anchored to an employment-based priority date.
Family Goals and EB-5
“And looking at the industry and broad market in US, I felt that there was a lot more opportunity; they got more that I could still learn and grow in. That’s where we decided that we wanted to move to US.
Now, when we decided to move to US, obviously we had to foresee like, ‘What is this? Are we doing something for long term or short term? What kind of move are we looking to do, or what is our goal?’ And then we decided…
I’m making a move to go to the US I’m not just going to go there and make money and then come back. It’s something that, if I’m going to settle, then I want to make sure if my kids are getting educated and I’m going to settle down.”
— Hardik, Twin Lakes Rural
Hardik’s reasoning is practical: once a family decides the move is long-term, temporary visa planning stops making sense.
You cannot build a stable life around renewals and “maybe later” transitions.
EB-5 fits because it is designed for permanent residence and can include spouse and children under 21, which makes it a clearer decision for families who are planning years ahead, not months ahead.
“So actually, the application is for my son… who’s studying at Emory University in Atlanta. We’re Canadians.
To circle back, my son is studying in the States. His dream is to be in the States, and I just want to make life a little bit easier for him. We came across the EB-5, which is, in our estimate, one of the speediest ways to get a Green Card, and that’s really where we came to the EB-5.
There were other options, but they had other risks associated with them that was really not on the table with an EB-5.”
— Mike, ONE Tampa Urban
Mike wanted the best for his child’s future. For families who can qualify, EB-5 stands out because it is not tied to a job offer, lottery, or employer sponsorship. In their view, it is a more direct route to a Green Card with fewer risks in the future.
“We’ve been considering, for some time, moving down to the States for several reasons. First and foremost would be opportunities for our children: economic opportunities, a larger labor market, more choices of place to live, better weather, better medical care. That’s the reason we have been considering moving down to the States. We ended up settling on the EB-5 visa option because we felt, after consulting with several different attorneys, that EB-5 is the best and most secure way to obtain a Green Card—and have the security of knowing that you will end up with a Green Card.
There aren’t that many interim steps, and you don’t have to reapply. Initially, it’s a conditional Green Card for two years, but as long as the job creation standards and requirements are met (and the forms are filed in a timely manner prior to the end of the two-year conditional process), you should be getting a permanent Green Card for your family and for any children under the age of 21”
— James, Twin Lakes Rural
James highlights the appeal of a much more direct path to U.S. Green Cards, without cumbersome requirements such as employer sponsorship. Investors repeatedly describe EB-5 as “secure” because it is built around a simple immigration process—file, adjust or consular process, receive conditional residence, then remove conditions—rather than a long series of extensions and re-entries that can change with policy or employment.
Uncertainty of Non-Immigrant Visas (H-1B, E-2, etc.)
“There were other options that we also looked at such as E-2 visas for business. And then we also considered, ‘Maybe I can join a company that has a sister company in Canada, move up the ranks, go through the management chain and then come through L-1 visa.’
Theoretically, those are options that we were looking at. All those options are 5 to 10 years down the road, and even then we don’t know what the processing time at that time is going to be. So it’s something that I considered in the long run: what’s going to be my best option here?
So, looking at a combination of opportunities for myself as well as for my kids, we decided to go with the EB-5 option.”
— Hardik, Twin Lakes Rural
Hardik is clear about why EB-5 won: the alternatives were slow, conditional, and still uncertain at the finish line. Even when options exist on paper, they can require years of career moves, employer decisions, and timing that no one can promise. That is why investors often mention E-2 and similar paths only to explain why they rejected them as a long-term residency strategy.
“What happened was I saw an email (because my dad had signed me up for all these email blasts regarding EB-5) that said, ‘If you apply now, you can get your EAD, and there are no backlogs for Green Cards for Indian or Chinese nationals. You can get your EAD and travel permit as soon as within a year.’
That is what caught my attention”
— Sid, Twin Lakes Rural
For many investors, the decision becomes real when they see concrete, near-term benefits that temporary statuses do not offer. The ability to file and then pursue work authorization and travel permission changes the feel of the process. It turns “waiting” into “progress,” especially through concurrent filing for those who qualify.
As Sid notes, rural EB-5 projects allow investors (including those from China and India) to receive their Green Cards quickly, potentially in a matter of months, not years.
“The EB-5 visa just seemed to be a relatively hassle-free process versus a lot of other visas, which depend a lot on the strength of your case, which unfortunately nobody can really quantify for you. I just wanted to get rid of that uncertainty and find a permanent solution to the problem.”
— Siddharth, Twin Lakes Rural
Siddharth’s point is that many visa paths hinge on variables the applicant cannot control: employer sponsorship, annual quotas, shifting timelines, or a case that “might” be strong enough. EB-5 still requires careful compliance, but investors often view it as more secure because the requirements are defined and the steps are laid out from the start. That is why many refer back to the core EB-5 visa value: a direct route to permanent residence and long-term stability.
Success Stories of EB5AN Investors—Yours Could Be Next
“After filing the I-526E application in March, I got my EAD and advance parole within 60 days. That was extremely lucky because I thought that people had to wait a few months. But within almost approximately or even less than 60 days, both of us got our EAD and advance parole. And using that, we were actually able to travel back to India for the first time after five years
Since we have our EAD and AP, that gives us pretty much the freedom to do anything that we want. It gives us a sense of relief, a sense of permanency that you belong in this country, because we’ve been here for about eight years and you just don’t know. You might have to just pack up your bags. There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding your life. You cannot buy a house. You cannot make investments, meaningful investments. You cannot switch jobs easily. You cannot travel. All those headaches pretty much go away.
Right now, I think it’s just a waiting game of when the Green Card application gets approved—I’m hoping in the next few months, getting our Green Card”
— Sid, Twin Lakes Rural
This is what many investors mean when they say EB-5 changed their daily life before the Green Card even arrived. The practical benefits—work authorization and the ability to travel—provide many benefits: easier job moves, fewer life restrictions, and less fear that one immigration event will result in having to leave the U.S.. For investors who can adjust status, the details of EAD and advance parole can provide peace of mind.
“Before I got my I-526E approved, I noticed that for Twin Lakes project, the fastest approval was nine months roughly, I think, nine, nine and a half months. And when I saw that, I started calculating when are my nine and a half months done. So I should start looking into it, let me see am I getting approved soon or not.
I saw a notification that ‘There is an update on your 526E case.’ And I opened it, and it was to my surprise approved.
When I had my EAD, I was already eligible to switch work. So with the Green Card, now I know that, once I have my Green Card, it not only allows me flexibility in terms of jobs, I believe there are a lot of opportunities. It also expands more opportunity, because eventually I do plan to get my Green Card converted into citizenship. And when I do that, I open up a lot more opportunity because a lot of the companies require citizenship of the country before they can allow someone to work. So that’s one.
The other is it opens a lot more doors for my kids now, because now they’re also eligible. They will receive their Green Card in future, whether they want to stay in U.S. or outside somewhere, at least they have that option, that they don’t have to worry about staying here or getting their own visa after they turn 21. So that is probably biggest.”
— Hardik, Twin Lakes Rural
Hardik and many other EB5AN investors have experienced a fast I-526E approval in only months, the ability to work and travel while waiting, and then the long-term results—career flexibility without sponsorship, a cleaner path to citizenship if desired, and protection for children before they age out. For many families, that combination is the whole reason they chose EB-5: a direct route to permanent residence.
You and your family could be next in line to experience the freedom of working and living in the United States—on your own terms. If your goal is to relocate to the U.S., EB-5 is likely the best—or even the only—immigration option available to you.
We invite you to learn more and schedule a free consultation with EB5AN. Discover how you could become a U.S. Green Card holder in only months.
