Transparent and Institutional EB-5 Regional Center Investments

What is an EB-5 Regional Center Investment?

The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, a permanent federal program established in 1990, allows foreign investors to pursue U.S. residency by investing in a project that creates jobs for American workers. In 1992, Congress created the EB-5 Regional Center Program to simplify the investment process and thus attract more investors to stimulate economic growth. Under the EB-5 regional center program, multiple EB-5 investors can pool their funds together to invest into a single investment that is managed by a USCIS approved EB-5 regional center. The EB-5 regional center program has been re-authorized by the U.S. Congress and will be available to any new investors who invest in EB-5 projects before 2027.

To satisfy the requirements of the EB-5 program, an EB-5 investor must invest either $800K or $1.05M and create at least 10 new full-time jobs for American workers. The minimum investment amounts vary based on the location of the EB-5 investment project: those located in a targeted employment area (TEA) qualify for the reduced investment amount of $800K—all other areas have a minimum investment of $1.05M.

There are two main types of TEA: rural areas and high unemployment urban areas. EB5AN provides both types of investment projects. Below, we’ve listed the latest ones ready for you to invest in.

Invest In A Rural TEA EB-5 Investment Project With EB5AN

There are several benefits to investing in rural EB-5 projects, including:

  • Reduced minimum investment—as mentioned above, projects located in a rural TEA require an investment of $800,000 not $1,050,000.
  • Priority processing of Form I-526E means faster Green Card approval.
  • 20% reserved visa set aside means you’re less likely to get stuck in a visa backlog; especially important if you were born in India or China.

We currently have two options for low-risk rural TEA investments:

Tamarack Resort (Loan)
– $800K Rural Regional Center Investment

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REGIONAL CENTER EB-5 PROJECT NOW OPEN

  • The project is a master-planned all seasons resort with world-class amenities, including a full-service marina on Lake Cascade and an award-winning, operational 18-hole championship golf course ranked #2 in the entire state of Idaho.
  • A senior construction loan is already in place, and the project is fully funded.
  • The project is in a prime location, only ~20 miles from the McCall Airport and ~100 miles from Boise, Idaho.
  • Construction is underway, and mid-mountain lodge will be completed by the end of 2024.
  • Over 2,336 eligible EB-5 jobs have already been created as of July 2024.
  • Strong sales, with 100+ condominiums already sold at $1M+ average price
  • The project’s rural TEA status qualifies EB-5 investors for faster I-526E processing.
  • The project’s Form I-956F exemplar application has been approved by USCIS.
  • Rural TEA also status means access to the 20% EB-5 visa set-aside category, which reduces investors’ waiting time for a Green Card after their I-526E approval.
  • The EB-5 loan is secured with a pledge of 100% equity in the project company as well as senior mortgages on property in Tamarack Resort.
  • The project has an exclusive partnership with CoralTree Hospitality, an institutional resort operator and wholly owned subsidiary of legendary real estate company Lowe.
  • The project features a short four-year EB-5 loan term.
  • EB-5 investors can make partial initial EB-5 investments of less than $800,000 with a commitment to fund the balance within a set period of time.
  • EB-5 investors benefit from an I-526E approval refund guaranty.
  • EB-5 investors benefit from a job creation guaranty.
  • EB5AN’s track record includes 20+ prior EB-5 regional center projects with 100% financial success and USCIS project approval on all prior projects.
  • H-1B / F-1 / E-2 / TN / L-1 visa holders can immediately adjust their immigration status and concurrently file for EAD and travel documents.

Rocky River (Loan)
– $800K Rural Regional Center Investment

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REGIONAL CENTER EB-5 PROJECT NOW OPEN

Twin Lakes Georgia (Loan)
– $800K Rural Regional Center Investment
Form I-956F Exemplar Approved

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REGIONAL CENTER EB-5 PROJECT NOW OPEN

Invest In An Urban TEA EB-5 Investment Project With EB5AN

Urban EB-5 projects located in TEAs offer the same investor benefits as those in rural areas. The few main differences are:

  • The location qualifies as an urban TEA because the area has at least 150% of the national average unemployment rate.
  • Urban TEA EB-5 projects can be larger in scope and can generate higher economic activity because of higher populations in these areas.
  • However, investors in an Urban TEA EB-5 project will not receive faster priority processing of their I-526E petitions, and will only have access to a 10% reserved visa set aside

We currently have two EB-5 projects located in urban targeted employment areas:

ONE Tampa (Loan)
– $800K Urban Regional Center Investment

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REGIONAL CENTER EB-5 PROJECT NOW OPEN

Boynton Beach Multifamily (Equity)
– $800K Urban Regional Center Investment

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REGIONAL CENTER EB-5 PROJECT NOW OPEN

Snake River Sporting Club
(Loan)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

CLOSED & I-956F APPROVED

Boynton Beach Multifamily
(Loan)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

CLOSED & I-956F APPROVED

Kindred Resort at Keystone
(Loan)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526 APPROVED

Wohali Utah
(Loan)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526E APPROVED

Twin Lakes Georgia
(Loan 3)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

CLOSED & I-956F APPROVED

Twin Lakes
(Loan 2)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526E APPROVED

Twin Lakes
(Loan 1)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526E APPROVED

Saltaire St. Petersburg
Luxury Condominiums Phase II (Loan)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526 APPROVED

Twin Lakes Georgia
(Equity)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

I-956F & I-526E APPROVED

Saltaire St. Petersburg
Luxury Condominiums Phase I (Equity)

Saltaire St. Petersburg

CLOSED & I-526 APPROVED

Water Club
Luxury Condominiums (Loan)

Water Club

CLOSED & I-526 APPROVED

VUE Sarasota
Luxury Condominiums (Loan)

VUE Sarasota

CLOSED & I-526 APPROVED

Hyatt Hotel
Boca Raton

Hyatt Hotel

CLOSED & I-526 APPROVED

Westin Hotel Sarasota
(Loan)

Westin Hotel

CLOSED & I-526 APPROVED

Artistry Homes Sarasota
(Loan)

Artistry Homes

CLOSED & I-924 APPROVED

The History of the EB-5 Regional Center Program

When Congress created the EB-5 program in 1990, EB-5 visa applicants could only make direct investments in new commercial enterprises (NCEs). As detailed below, the lack of an EB-5 regional center sponsor required foreign nationals to create standard, full-time job positions that were registered on the company’s payroll. Moreover, EB-5 visa applicants were devoid of the oversight of a regional center sponsor to manage their funds and ensure that their projects complied with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services EB-5 standards.

These and other limitations of EB-5 direct investment led to the creation of the EB-5 Regional Center Program in 1992. Through this program, business entities can now receive a license from United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (that is, regional center designation) to pool EB-5 funding and supervise its release into a project. While the EB-5 Regional Center Program created an important new niche in the EB-5 industry, regional center sponsorship also grants EB-5 foreign nationals the benefit of increased transparency and accounting requirements for their capital.

With the 2008 financial crisis, regional centers experienced increased demand as project developers across the United States looked to the regional center program as an accessible source of below-market funding. Since then, the regional center program has become by far the most popular investment model in the EB-5 industry.

It is important to note that the regional centers model is temporary and depends on periodic renewal by Congress. While the regional center program had expired briefly due to a delayed spending bill, it experienced a significantly longer period of suspension from June 2021 to March 2022, when the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 was passed. Moreover, due to an initially stringent interpretation of the Reform and Integrity Act, it was not until mid-2022 that regional centers were allowed to resume EB-5 operations.

Now, the regional center model is authorized until September 2027. This secures the regional center EB-5 industry for several more years and incentivizes project developers to raise regional center funding.

The Reform and Integrity Act also introduced stricter transparency and reporting requirements for regional center operators.

Why Are Regional Center Projects Preferable to Direct Investment Projects?

In the direct investment model, an EB-5 investor’s capital is injected directly into an NCE, with no intermediaries. Moreover, direct investment EB-5 projects are only allowed to raise funds from one EB-5 investor, and all 10 required jobs must be standard W-2 positions.

These stricter EB-5 requirements can make it more challenging for an EB-5 investor to fulfill all the immigration services criteria for a Green Card. Many foreign nationals also prefer the additional oversight and transparency that a regional center sponsor can provide; they may be able to seek professional advice from their regional centers managers, who are likely experienced in fund management, accounting, immigration law, and other related fields. Most regional center projects are also located in targeted employment areas.

Regional centers control the flow of EB-5 investment capital into a regional center project. This allows for increased supervision of the transactions, and regional centers can carefully vet the project developer they will collaborate with to ensure financial integrity and compliance with immigration services regulations. Foreign investors who work with regional centers often feel more confident that their funds will be managed carefully and used exclusively for EB-5-compliant job creation purposes.

Perhaps the greatest benefit of EB-5 regional centers is their ability to count indirect employment toward fulfilling the 10-job requirement for investors. Indirect employment is calculated, not by an NCE’s payroll records, but by its overall economic impact. Metrics such as the construction expenditures of a project are used for this purpose.

This framework allows EB-5 investors to reach the 10-job requirement more easily. In some cases, EB-5 visa applicants can invest in regional centers projects that have already created part or all of the needed jobs through construction expenditures. In turn, this can significantly increase an EB-5 investor’s chances of immigration and financial success.

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