All EB-5 investor need the minimum amount in investment capital to begin the EB-5 process. The current threshold investment amount stands at $1,050,000, while the reduced amount for projects in targeted employment areas (TEAs) stands at $800,000. The actual investment capital is the only official financial requirement of the EB-5 program. However, realistically speaking, the investor will need a much larger sum due to the accumulation of necessary legal costs, filing fees, and administration fees.
All EB-5 investors are advised to start the EB-5 process with the aid of an immigration attorney. An experienced attorney will help investors facilitate the process and ensure they comply with all required legalities. Hiring an immigration attorney will naturally incur costs of its own, which generally range from $15,000 to $25,000. In addition, the various petitions that need to be submitted as part of the EB-5 process come with substantial filing fees.
To begin with, the I-526 petition, which is filed by EB5 investors seeking a conditional green card, has a filing fee of $3,675. The I-485 petition, which is filed by nonimmigrant visa holders to adjust their status to conditional permanent resident, has a filing fee of $1,140. Form I-829, which is filed by investors seeking to remove the conditions from their permanent resident status, has a filing fee of $3,750. In some cases, biometrics must be conducted, which incurs an additional service fee of $85. (These fees are correct as of May 2022. For up-to-date information, see the USCIS All Forms page.)
For investors investing through a regional center, there is also an administrations fee to pay. It is charged by the regional center for the service of managing the project. The precise amount depends on the specific regional center agency and the project the investor chooses to invest in. Furthermore, an EB-5 investor who invests through a regional center must have accredited investor status. To qualify for accredited status, the investor must have a net worth of $1 million, either individually or jointly with a spouse, or have earned at least $200,000, or $300,000 jointly with a spouse, in the past two years consecutively and be expecting to earn as much in the current year.
