As the December 11 deadline for U.S. investment immigration policy changes approaches, some investors have recently chosen to wait and see, holding off on actual investments until U.S. immigration policies stabilize and the "other shoe drops." Recently, Klasko, a leading authority and top immigration attorney in the U.S. EB-5 investment immigration sector, stated that the future of U.S. EB-5 immigration policy is unpredictable. The wisest choice for investors, rather than waiting for "price hikes" and "stricter regulations" to arrive, is to rush to apply and make their investments.
Klasko believes that, as of now, there is still a high probability that Congress will pass new legislation that includes at least an increase in the minimum investment amount and changes to the definition of TEA (Targeted Employment Area). Of course, the possibility of them passing this law before December 11, 2015, is becoming increasingly slim. Another possibility is that Congress may temporarily extend the EB-5 Regional Center program for a period (likely no more than one year), while first attaching measures to strengthen project credibility as involved in the Senate's 1501 draft, without deciding on issues such as increasing the minimum investment amount, changing the TEA definition, and employment calculation methods.
In short, there are many uncertainties regarding U.S. investment immigration policy changes. Based on this, Klasko's advice to EB-5 investors remains that it is better to invest and submit an EB-5 application as soon as possible rather than waiting for the new law to pass. If an investor waits for the new law to pass before investing, it basically means they will need to invest more capital. If they invest now, it is very likely that the $500,000 investment amount can be grandfathered in. Additionally, do not forget that for Chinese investors, investing earlier means securing a priority date in the EB-5 visa queue sooner. If a Chinese investor waits 6 to 9 months to make an EB-5 investment, the delay in obtaining a conditional green card will likely far exceed 6-9 months due to regional limitations on EB-5 visa quotas.
Wise EB-5 investors should take precautions, be well-prepared, and make the best possible preparations before the December 11 policy change. They should try to select projects according to the strictest high standards currently discussed in the industry. Quickly investing in high-quality projects protected by the grandfather clause can undoubtedly minimize the impact of future policy uncertainties.
The three high-quality EB-5 projects exclusively represented by Worldway—the DLJ Four Seasons Hotel and Resort project (a successfully approved project with investment and repayment from a multi-billion dollar real estate fund), and the 90 Columbus apartment project (a rare Manhattan concept apartment project with a full set of I-526 documents already receiving sample approval)—are highly sought after by investors. The main reason is that these three projects are all high-quality projects that have been "successfully grandfathered." Even under the strictest current EB-5 reform standards, these three projects still meet the requirements for "successful grandfathering," and their investment amounts, TEA designations, and employment calculation methods are not affected by the uncertainties of the December 11 policy changes.
In particular, the DLJ Four Seasons Hotel and Resort project received official I-526 approval from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in October of this year. This means that all investors in this project, regardless of when they submitted their applications, will enter the fast-track approval process as long as their individual application documents are in order! To secure your $500,000 U.S. investment immigration quota, please call the group purchase hotline: 400-138-2929
Disclaimer: Some materials in this article are excerpted from the original author H. Ronald Klasko's article, translated by F. Oliver Yang, with the original title "Is December 11 Important?". The copyright belongs to the original author. The information or views in this article are for reference only. If there are any copyright issues, please contact the original author or us.