In recent years, there has been constant discussion within the U.S. investment immigration industry regarding EB-5 reform. A price increase has become a consensus, while the issue of visa backlogs has become the current focus of intense debate. So, what is the EB-5 backlog? How does it affect investors? What are the feasible solutions to resolve it? With an EB-5 price hike imminent, how can investors easily immigrate to the United States against the backdrop of this backlog?
WorldWay Group will provide ongoing coverage of the latest developments in U.S. EB-5 investment immigration reform. Please stay tuned! In this issue, we provide a brief overview of the basic issues surrounding the EB-5 backlog:
A simple analogy to easily understand the EB-5 backlog
When the EB-5 visa quota reaches its limit, the U.S. Department of State must trace back based on the number of investors with approved I-526 petitions according to the current fiscal year's visa quota, set a "cut-off date," and prioritize the issuance of EB-5 visas for applicants whose "priority date" is earlier than the "cut-off date." Therefore, the period during which an investor with an approved I-526 petition waits for the "cut-off date" in the visa bulletin to be later than their own "priority date" is the waiting period (EB-5 backlog).
To use a simple analogy: A movie theater has limited seats, and the next group is only allowed to enter after one show ends. (The number of seats is equivalent to the quota). However, movie tickets are sold openly, and the ticket seller is the immigration authority. If someone who bought a ticket happens to find a seat, they can enter. But what if there are more tickets than seats? Then it becomes first-come, first-served, and a "backlog" occurs. The "priority date" is the sequence number in the queue.
Once a backlog occurs:
If the visa applicant's "priority date" is earlier than the "cut-off date," they may apply for an EB-5 visa or adjust their status;
If the "priority date" is later than the "cut-off date," they cannot apply for an EB-5 visa or adjust their status and must wait until the "cut-off date" is after their "priority date" for a visa to become available.
EB-5 backlog for mainland China investors first appeared in May 2015
In recent years, the number of high-net-worth individuals from mainland China applying for U.S. EB-5 investment immigration has continued to rise, leading to a situation where demand exceeds the quota. In the May 2015 visa bulletin released by the U.S. immigration authorities, a backlog for EB-5 investors from mainland China appeared.
The backlog exacerbates the aging-out crisis for children as derivative applicants in immigration applications
According to relevant provisions of U.S. immigration law, only unmarried children under the age of 21 can apply with their parents. The emergence of the EB-5 backlog puts children applying as derivative applicants at risk of turning 21 by the time they land in the United States.
WorldWay Group's friendly reminder:
The vast majority of Chinese families apply for EB-5 for the sake of their children. Ensuring that their children can obtain a green card and successfully land in the United States before the age of 21 is the most important consideration when processing EB-5 U.S. investment immigration.
Therefore, choosing to have children as the primary applicants has become a hot topic of discussion in the industry. WorldWay Group, a leading investment immigration institution, has already had successful cases of minors acting as primary applicants for U.S. immigration with approved I-526 petitions, which once again proves the strong team strength and high level of case handling at WorldWay Group. Therefore, against the backdrop of a lengthening backlog, we suggest that clients who intend to choose minors as primary applicants for U.S. immigration can rest assured in choosing WorldWay for their processing.
WorldWay I-526 approval letter for a minor client as the primary applicant for U.S. immigration (applicant age only 16)
How to break the backlog? Eight major proposals from Congress
Recently, the issue of the backlog has risen from the level of discussion to practical action. Congressional leaders have not only realized the importance of the backlog issue but have also successively produced practical and feasible plans to break the backlog.
WorldWay Group has also specifically published an article—Tracking the Latest Trends in EB-5 Reform: A Detailed Explanation of Eight Major Solutions to Break the Backlog (click to learn more)—to provide advice for investors immigrating to the United States.
It can be basically predicted that the future EB-5 backlog may be resolved.
Painful but happy! Backlog broken, price hike coming
Recently, the new EB-5 Regional Center bill proposed by the Senate Majority Whip is expected to be passed by the end of September this year.
In this new EB-5 bill, it is also proposed to change the 10,000 visa applications to 10,000 family quotas, and it is emphasized again that after long-term negotiations and bargaining between the urban and rural factions in Congress, both sides are expected to reach important concessions and compromises after September 30.
This also means that the EB-5 price hike may erupt immediately after September 30. To a certain extent, it can be said that when the September 30 deadline arrives, it will also be the time when the EB-5 price hike storm arrives. Therefore, if you want to seize the opportunity of investing $500,000 to immigrate to the United States, you must complete the investment as quickly as possible!
Win before the price hike, acting fast is key
To get a green card sooner, you must submit sooner. Currently, WorldWay's two high-quality EB-5 projects are helping investors get U.S. green cards quickly and are currently on sale. At the same time, WorldWay Group's professional U.S. immigration team, including consultants, lawyers, documentation specialists, and customer service staff, will do their utmost to help you complete your immigration application professionally and quickly.
2017 Diamond-level EB-5 Project Dallas No. 1:
● Located in the diamond zone of U.S. economic growth
● Billionaire personally leads and signs to move in
● Total repayment mortgage guarantee is as high as 3.8 times the EB-5 capital
● Job creation can be exceeded upon project completion
● Rare triple protection mechanism to safeguard capital security
● Pioneering "buyer's lawyer" to protect EB-5 investment
● Top-tier EB-5 professional team to escort the approval process
● Strong market demand and broad development prospects
【Friendly Reminder】WorldWay Group will provide ongoing coverage of the latest developments in U.S. EB-5 investment immigration reform. We will focus on interpreting the latest EB-5 hot topics, including policy updates, solutions for the visa backlog, current investment trends, and potential pathways for EB-5 applicants. Please continue to follow the official website or official WeChat account of WorldWay Group for the latest updates. For inquiries, please call: 400-138-2929
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