Investor Green Card - EB5

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Originally posted by Fido

There s an investor category Green Card (EB5) which you qualify for if you have invested USD 500K in high unemployment rural areas and can create / sustain 10 full time employees over a span of 2 years .

This is an underutilized category due to massive investment and effort ... Wondering if there have been any known success stories for EB5 and if one had that kind of moolah ($500K) , which establishment / industry would be recommended ...

In other words , which industries would need less capital expenditure and more cheap employment potential ... for humor , I can think of a hair cutting salon ..... Which ones come to your mind ?

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USCIS maintains a list of approved {(which does not signify endorsement) EB-5 (Immigrant Investor)} Regional Centers by state, but without details. As of February 2012, there are 218 centers. The states with the highest numbers of regional centers are California (49), Florida (22), and Washington (11). IF you have the funds to invest, there is AMPLE HELP with details and a FEW LEGAL BEAGLES to help you in this....

Interesting tips and help from : Search the titles on the left hand side....
http://e2visalawyer.net/substantial_investment.htm


FH

An overview of the project : http://www.cmbeb5visa.com/eb5-in-depth
EB-5 visas allow foreign entrepreneurs and their dependants to live in the United States in order to manage large-scale investments. To qualify for an EB-5 visa, the entrepreneur must invest $500,000 in a designated regional center or $1 million anywhere in the United States. Regardless of the size of the investment, it must create full-time employment for at least 10 U.S. workers.

There are a multitude of advantages to obtainment of an EB-5 Visa relative to other potential green card options. Notably, obtainment of an EB-5 Visa does not require a labor certification process in order to attempt to demonstrate a shortage of U.S. workers to perform the potential job. Moreover, the EB-5 Visa does not require the applicant to maintain an existing home country business. The EB-5 Visa further does not require extraordinary ability in business.

EB-5 visas are initially granted to investors, their spouses, and their dependents on a two-year conditional basis. An investor applying for an EB-5 visa must begin by selecting a regional program and satisfying the fees and investment requirements. These procedures vary among programs, as do the mechanisms for recovering an investment if the application is denied.

With the appropriate regional program selected and payments satisfied, the next step is the submission of a Form I-526 to the appropriate regional center of U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, which usually takes between nine and 15 months to grant approval. After winning this approval, the foreign investor must meet with a representative of the U.S. government at the embassy in the investor’s home country for reviews of the applicant’s medical, criminal, and immigration history. Carlos Colombo, Esq. is himself an immigrant and entrepreneur, giving him the experience and expertise critical to winning initial approval of a Form I-526 and preparing investors for the embassy meeting.

Once the initial EB-5 visa is granted on a two-year conditional basis, the immigrant investor must enter the United States within 180 days of issuance. After new immigrant entrepreneurs begin managing their investments from within the United States, the Colombo & Hurd, PLnetwork of offices and attorneys can help investors anywhere in the country prepare their petitions for permanent resident status.

Petitions submitted to the U.S. federal government will need to include extensive evidence that the immigrant investor is complying with the terms of the EB-5 visa.

THE PETITION MUST DEMONSTRATE THAT

A new commercial enterprise has been established,
the proper amount of capital has been placed at risk,
the capital invested was lawfully gained,
the investment has created at least ten full-time jobs
the investor intends to stay in the United States, and
the investor will be engaged in the management of the enterprise.
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EB5 Visa Success Stories

Living costs are often lower in the USA. Even after taking account of specific items such as healthcare insurance many immigrants have discovered significant financial advantages living Stateside. Some parents have discovered its pointless paying fees for private schools when particular areas of the USA have state schools that rival the best schools in the world.

Most people need between four and 12 months to investigate options, make the decision and then organize their affairs. Interest in the EB5 visa has been increasing and looks likely to continue growing as the desire to immigrate gains momentum, stimulated no doubt by increased awareness of the advantages offered by the USA such as a year round outdoor lifestyle, (Florida and Southern California) certain school areas, taxes etc.

Approximately 130 British/Irish citizens have taken the EB-5 (pilot program) route. Outside the UK and Ireland there have been many more EB-5 (pilot program) visa applications.

One of the British couples making an investment in return for a Green Card were Michael and Pamela Green.

The couple were among the first dozen Britons to immigrate to following amendments to the visa system. The Greens bought into a retail project. They receive an annual return and did not have to live in the area where they had invested.

For the first two years, their Green Cards had conditions related to maintaining the investment which can then be reviewed and removed. After five years, they can seek citizenship.

They left to move permanently into the holiday home they bought in Lakeland, Florida, 12 years ago and sold twin bungalows with a swimming pool, in Bath, Somerset, to move to their bungalow in a complex beside a golf course fairway. "There is a swimming pool, a fitness centre and the same amount of land but other people take care of it," said Mr. Green. "I don't have to cut the grass or clean the pool."

He added: "We now enjoy a comfortable lifestyle, a very nice climate, with English-speaking people, and a low cost of living. The investment is a small amount to pay for that benefit." "The sun shines through the window virtually every day."

Mr. Green, a 12-handicap golfer, and a former managing director of a car dealership, added: "The comparison in the cost of living is incredible. Petrol is $3 a gallon.

The couple have a son, a grandchild, and another grandchild on the way. "At my stage of life my family can come to me," Mr. Green said.

David and Fran Hodgkinson
Retired from top local government consultancy posts before moving two years ago via the investment visa option. They spent several months thoroughly researching the various options and felt it was imperative they immigrated via a green card route, feeling after stressful high pressure jobs, relaxation in the sun with their dogs was the key consideration rather than having to set up and maintain a business in Florida which was a requirement of the other visa options.

Fran had retained great memories of America after student days as a camp councilor with BUNAC and the thrill was reawakened on holidays to Florida including Disney.

Having looked at a shortlist of options in Florida they chose a ranch style home with 6 acres of land in Myakka several miles outside Sarasota as the ideal move from their home in small Sussex village.

Having personally cleared their land of scrub to design their garden Fran returned to her roots with a summer job at the world famous Bollettieri Academy and again they feel their Florida lifestyle has given them even more than they expected.

I don't want to clutter up this thread and so, I will post another link to a few of the success stories. : http://www.eb-5center.com/taxonomy/term/19

ONE MORE SUCCESS STORY : http://www.eb5exclusive.com/eb-5-news-and-updates/tag/eb-5-projects

A GOOD REASON TO SEEK... by a MEXICAN Entrepreneur.... :

Mexican Entrepreneur Migrates to the United States with an EB-5 Visa

After one of our Mexican clients learned that someone had been monitoring his activities and plotting to kidnap his children, he decided to leave Mexico for the Unites States. He runs a very successful company in Mexico, so to this was a difficult decision. He contacted us to determine which immigrant visa would be best for his family. He would continue to direct his Mexican business from the United States so had no interest in setting up another company here. For this reason, neither the E2 nor the L1A visas were viable options. After consulting with us, this investor felt that the EB-5 investment program, designed to increase the flow of foreign capital into and create jobs in the United States was the best option as this program would allow him to immigrate to the United States and obtain green cards for him and for his family members. We introduced him to several projects that were available. He chose a hotel project which was already under construction in the Mississippi Development Regional Center. We prepared and submitted his petition in July 2011 and in March, 2012, USCIS approved the petition. The petition approval took about 7 months which is, at this moment, the standard processing time.
If you are interested in learning more about the EB-5 Visa program, please contact me at (305) 539 726 or

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EB-5_visa

FH