The I-526 is considered the first step in the U.S. EB5 application process. Investors must fill out the I-526 application form and submit the necessary related documents, as well as provide evidence that they have made an investment that complies with legal requirements and meets EB-5 conditions.
1. Select an Investment Project and Transfer Funds to the Designated Escrow Bank
At this stage, applicants, with the assistance of immigration agencies and immigration lawyers, need to select a high-quality EB-5 project from many available on the market that meets their application needs. After determining the investment project, investors must also sign a subscription agreement, an escrow agreement (only if there is an escrow account), and a fund issuance memorandum, while transferring the investment amount of $500,000 or $1,000,000 to the designated escrow bank for the project.
2. Prepare Materials and Submit to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
At this stage, the application documents that investors need to prepare include:
(1) Self-Introduction Letter and Evidence List
The self-introduction letter serves to introduce oneself to USCIS, describing the preparatory work done and how the investor meets the requirements of the EB-5 program. The evidence list is used to document that the investor has fulfilled all the requirements of the EB-5 program.
(2) Copies of Passports of the Main Applicant and Dependents Simultaneously Immigrating
(3) I-526 Form
This form is provided by USCIS and completed by immigration lawyers. The form includes basic information used to identify the investor, detailing the preparations completed by the investor, including the nature of the newly established enterprise, the date of establishment, the amount of investment, the investment timeline, and more.
(4) Documentation of Source of Funds
These documents are used to prove that the funds invested have been obtained through legal means. For details on what these documents include, please refer to our previous articles, which provide detailed explanations.
(5) Documentation of Fund Flows
This document is to prove that the investor has transferred the funds into the project-related accounts. These documents generally include a letter from the bank confirming that the funds have been deposited to the project-related account and a bank statement from the business confirming that the funds are securely held in the relevant account.
(6) Business Operation Documents
Documents demonstrating how the investor’s funds are utilized in business expansion and job creation within the company.
(7) Application Fee Documentation
The applicant needs to provide the original check for the I-526 application fee of $3,675. It is important to note that the account from which the $500,000 and the $3,675 application fee are issued must be the primary applicant's account; it may also be a joint account.
(8) Business Plan
The business plan is one of the most important documents in the I-526 application. USCIS will evaluate the legality of the investment based on the business plan and assess whether the investor has a comprehensive and executable plan to achieve the goal of “creating 10 direct or indirect jobs” within two years.
A detailed business plan should include at least the following: an overview of the newly established enterprise, products and services offered, expected goals, etc. The plan must also clarify the names of competing companies and their respective strengths and weaknesses; a horizontal comparison of competitors' products and pricing strategies; licenses and business permits obtained; projections of future sales, costs, and revenues for the enterprise, and so on.
3. Obtain a Case Number and Await I-526 Approval
Once all application materials have been submitted, USCIS will return a case number to the applicant within 1 to 2 weeks. During the waiting period for the I-526 approval, applicants can use this case number to check their application status online in real-time.
If the documents submitted by the applicant are without issues, USCIS will approve the application and issue an I-526 approval notice. The investor then only needs to wait for their priority date and attend the interview at the consulate. As long as there are no significant issues during the interview, there should be no major concerns about obtaining the green card. However, if the applicant submits incomplete or incorrect documents, USCIS will request additional documentation; the worst-case scenario is that the I-526 application could be denied, at which point the investor's efforts may go to waste.