Discussing a Solution to I-526 Processing Backlog

How Properly Selected Direct EB-5 Opportunities Can Benefit Prospective EB-5 Investors

There has been much discussion of late regarding USCIS’ interpretation of call options in EB-5 investment structures.

I know most of our Vietnamese friends and AVS family members are too immersed in pre-Tet planning to be intently following the zany developments of Washington this week, so I’m writing this short entry to update you:

I am sitting in Doha, Qatar, waiting for my connection, and it just dawned on me that this whole business of trying to predict the future of EB-5 has become less of a “science” and more of an interpretive study in human dynamics since the launch of this most-unpredictable Trumpian era.  We are all still blogging away speculating about what MIGHT come but as EB-5 expert Suzanne Lazicki noted in her recent entry, the fact is that there has been nary a mention of EB-5 during these recent, extraordinarily weird weeks.  If we who live and breathe EB-5 can’t make heads or tails out of what is happening, what must the world of potential investors considering EB-5 be thinking? I dislike politics, and there is a lot to dislike about the politics of America today.  But the absolute lack of…

The Wall Street Journal reported this morning that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (i.e., the SEC, the U.S. federal agency responsible for governing how investments are offered by U.S. issuers) is investigating the real-estate company run by the family of President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner for its use of the EB-5 program. While the specifics of the investigation have not been made public, Washington’s focus on EB-5 enforcement has been increasing steadily this past year, after over a decade of rampant violation by EB-5 Regional Centers who routinely pay illegal “finders fees” to Chinese migration agents.  This past summer I wrote a post about the Congressional inquiry started against the Kushner Companies; it is good to see that the SEC is …

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the agency responsible for administering regulatory changes in the federal government, has updated its projected timeline for new EB-5 regulations from April 2018 to February 2018.  While I mentioned this already to readers, a lot more discussion has been going on online and I am writing this update to prepare you for what MAY be happening (with the caveat that, as always, we can never be certain of the specifics until the final regulations are published.) To give you a little background, it is important to explain that for the last few years, there have been two camps on the issue of EB-5 reform: on the one hand, Big EB-5 with its massive lobbying budget, would like nothing more to continue calling Manhattan high-rises “targeted employmen…

As evidenced from USCIS’ comments made during the Nov. 7th stakeholder meeting, the agency continues to struggle with a massive backlog of I-526 petitions and no immediate solutions is in sight.  As the most astute independent observer of the EB-5 industry, Suzanne Lazicki’s most recent blog delves into the specifics behind the backlog, clinically dissecting the factors and dynamics involved.  IPO Deputy Chief Julia Harrison explained in the November meeting that while USCIS can provide average processing times, actual adjudication time for any specific petition depends on multiple factors ranging from where the file is in the USCIS queue, the quality/approvability of the files ahead of it, and the “quality and clarity” of the particular petition.in question.  In other words, wh…

Folks, just a quick note: as I was en route back from Asia wondering if the US Government was going to shut down on Friday due to the end of the temporary funding provisions, I learned they managed another short-term extension through January 19, 2018.  Since the reforms are slated to be implemented next spring, the end of the $500,000 EB-5 threshold approaches rapidly.  Choose wisely, but if you’ve decided EB-5 is right for you and your family, choose soon. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!