In recent years, U.S. investment immigration has become increasingly popular. In 2014, the EB-5 visa quota was exhausted ahead of schedule for the first time. By 2015, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had a backlog of approximately 12,000 applications, and industry experts predicted that actual visa retrogression might occur during the spring and summer.
In view of the impending EB-5 visa retrogression, Worldway's U.S. immigration experts provide an introduction to the priority date and related content involved in the I-526 petition approval notice. U.S. federal law stipulates that the annual quota for EB-5 visas is 10,000. After an EB-5 investor submits an I-526 petition, the date the petition is received by USCIS is considered the investor's "priority date." Visa retrogression means that after the visa quota reaches its limit, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) must establish a cut-off date for visa applicants based on past priority dates, resulting in a time delay. To use a simple analogy, an EB-5 visa is like waiting in line, and the EB-5 investor's priority date is their position in that long line.
As shown in the example above, the EB-5 investor's priority date is August 20, 2014. This is the date USCIS received the investor's I-526 petition. However, the date on the receipt notice itself is August 21, 2014. Both dates can be found on the investor's I-526 petition receipt notice.
The U.S. Department of State uses the priority date to determine when an applicant can apply for an EB-5 visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad, or submit an application for adjustment of status within the United States. The Department of State publishes a Visa Bulletin every month, from which applicants can determine whether the Department of State can begin processing their visa application based on their priority date. If a visa category in the Visa Bulletin is marked with a "C," it means that for individuals in that category and applicants with approved I-526 petitions, "visas are current," and therefore they may apply for permanent residence. Suppose the Visa Bulletin lists a date of August 31, 2014, for the EB-5 visa category due to visa retrogression. In that case, if an EB-5 visa applicant's (A) I-526 petition priority date is on or before August 31, and (B) the petition is approved, the applicant may apply for an EB-5 visa or adjust status. If a visa applicant's priority date is earlier than the date published in the Visa Bulletin, the applicant's priority date is considered "current." In the example above, after the investor receives their I-526 approval notice, they should immediately check the Visa Bulletin. If the date listed in the bulletin is August 20 or later, the investor can apply for an EB-5 visa or submit an adjustment of status application.
The warning of U.S. investment immigration retrogression is drawing closer. To ensure a successful application and reduce processing time, choosing a project already approved by USCIS is currently the best response. Worldway has launched two projects that have already received I-924 approval from USCIS: the Liberty Garden Luxury Apartment project in New York and the Pennsylvania Turnpike project.
The Liberty Garden Luxury Apartment project in New York stands out among numerous real estate EB-5 projects due to its pre-approval of I-924 by USCIS, making it an unmissable choice for dealing with the 2015 U.S. investment immigration retrogression. Furthermore, the Liberty Garden Luxury Apartment project has a high net asset guarantee of 14.5 times. The developer, Lightstone Group, is one of the largest and most successful unlisted comprehensive real estate developers in the United States, and the developer's founder provides a personal asset guarantee of 11.7 times.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike project has already received I-924 approval from USCIS. Furthermore, this project involves a loan from the state government, with the state government promising repayment, making it a 100% U.S. government EB-5 project. The first phase of the Pennsylvania Turnpike project was sold out in just two months. Currently, the second phase of the Pennsylvania Turnpike project is experiencing an even more enthusiastic buying frenzy than the first. Consultation Hotline: 400-138-2929.
