The recently released USCIS Ombudsman Report has significantly impacted the EB-5 industry. We believe this report only partially accounts for the current data and is somewhat biased. The report states: "Apart from applicants from China, there is no backlog for applicants from other countries. Due to the excessive number of applications from China, if the visa quota is not increased or recalculated, Chinese applicants are likely to face a backlog of 10 years or more."
The Ombudsman Report's prediction of a 10-year backlog is based on the assumption that there will be no changes to the EB-5 law and no measures to resolve the backlog. However, the reality is quite the opposite; immigration reform in the United States is imperative, especially regarding EB-5. Currently, several bills in Congress propose solutions to the backlog issue for Chinese EB-5 applicants.
First, the "2017 EB-5 Investment Immigration Regional Center Comprehensive Reform Act" proposed by Republican Senator John Cornyn suggests eliminating the calculation of visa quotas for dependent spouses and children.
Second, the "Invest in America Act" proposed by Republican Senator Rand Paul suggests (1) eliminating the calculation of visa quotas for dependent spouses and children, (2) removing the visa quota limits for each country, and (3) modifying the visa quota caps for employment-based immigration.
Even if the above bills cannot pass this year, there is also the "2017 Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act" proposed by Republican Congressman Jason Chaffetz, which is gaining increasing support. This bill proposes to eliminate the cap that limits applicants from each country to only 7% of the total global visa numbers. This means that applicants from around the world would be on the same starting line, with applications processed on a first-come, first-served basis, significantly alleviating the backlog for Chinese applicants. In particular, Chinese applicants whose I-526 applications have already been approved will no longer have to watch as applicants from other countries with later submission dates receive their green cards through expedited processing. This bill has garnered support from a majority of Congress members. Currently, over 230 members of the House of Representatives, including 102 Republicans and 124 Democrats, have signed in agreement. A similar bill passed the House in 2011 with a vote of 389-15, but it was shelved due to a lack of time for a Senate vote at the end of the congressional session.
Summary
We see that Congress has clearly indicated the need for reform in investment immigration and recognizes the backlog issue for Chinese applicants. Possible solutions to the backlog include:
1. Eliminate the calculation of visa quotas for dependent applicants;
2. Remove the visa quota limits for each country;
3. Increase the cap on employment-based immigration visas;
4. Recalculate the wasted employment-based green card quotas from the past.