Investors interested in the EB-5 program can find available and trustworthy projects by consulting a variety of resources. For instance, investors will benefit greatly if they retain an immigration attorney who has experience working with the EB-5 program. Experienced immigration attorneys can provide invaluable counsel throughout the investment process and involve other professional EB-5 consultants. Besides retaining an immigration attorney, investors can contact regional centers, hire a licensed investment advisor, or consult online databases to find suitable EB-5 projects.
The EB-5 program is complex, and it can be challenging to keep track of the many requirements and regulations set out by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Further, EB-5 investments will always carry a degree of financial and immigration risk—regional centers cannot guarantee that their investors will receive their green cards at the end of the process.
Therefore, investors and their immigration attorneys should consider a variety of factors when evaluating potential projects. For instance, they should examine the developer’s and the regional center’s track records. If the developer or the regional center has been operating for a short time or has a history of denials for visa petitions, it is likely unreliable. Investors should find out if the developer and the regional center have successfully completed previous projects.
The project must also be able to meet the job creation requirements. To receive their green cards, investors must prove that they created 10 new full-time jobs. The most dependable projects strive to create more than the necessary number of jobs to account for any eventualities.
Investors should look for regional centers and developers that communicate openly with investors and provide them with all required information and documentation regarding the project. Regional centers or developers that charge exorbitant administrative fees or do not disclose important financial information are likely untrustworthy.
