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July 30th, 2010 |
 The family had spent some considerable time investigating options for immigration to different countries with their short list comprising Australia, Canada and the United States. They had concerns regarding the climate being too cold for much of the year in Canada and felt Australia was less central for their business requirements than the USA, deciding that California was the best match for their needs. Once they had determined that California most suited them they had spoken to an Attorney regarding visa options and she had put them in touch with WhichEB5 to take them through the various regional center programs. The family was particularly concerned that once they received the visa there should be no problems at the two year stage (the removal of conditions) so were very insistent that the center should have a proven and straightforward record of job creation. They also did not want a project that could have difficulty obtaining subscribers, in case it did not reach a critical mass and then failed to go ahead. Finally exit strategy and the return of their funds was an important consideration. These specific requirements considerably narrowed down the range of options and after discussing these with them over a number of internet phone conversations, a meeting was held at our office and subsequently they visited three regional centers. Their final decision was based on these visits with the chosen center particularly impressing them, as they felt as an ongoing program it was well proven and minimized as far as possible risk factors. The family has now successfully relocated to California. We have continued to keep in touch and checked out issues that have cropped up with him for the benefit of new investors.
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Tags: attorney, california, Canada, eb5, exit strategy, Immigration, job creation, regional center, removal of conditions, USA, visa, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
July 21st, 2010 |
 An Irish family who had significant agricultural holdings had been monitoring the progress of the EB-5 visa for several years. They had originally purchased property on the east coast of Florida and taken lengthy holidays to see how they would adjust to the American way of life. They then purchased other properties for rental, taking advantage of the bottoming of the property market and to build an earnings portfolio for eventual relocation. They required a visa route that offered permanent residency and green cards for all the family, and wished to increase their property portfolio once they had resettled in Florida. After a detailed briefing with us they decided the EB5 pilot program was the most appropriate option and looked into the various programs in more detail. They emphasized that they required a program which had not suffered from long delays caused by requests for further evidence (RFE’s), they were also concerned that the program had been operating for several years, complied with job requirements and had a clear and specific exit strategy. After investigating the alternatives and narrowing them down to two options they opted for a project which to date has a 100% track record of approval. Following clarification on a number of issues they invested $500,000 – there where additional administration and attorney fees. The family required an Attorney based in Florida with a track record of working on EB-5 applications and also had a number of questions for us regarding possible locations to resettle in, the schooling system, removals, property, transfer of pets, health coverage etc. The I-526 approval took three months and the couple were then interviewed at the U.S. Consulate and granted visas.
Read more EB-5 Success Stories here
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Tags: attorney, consulate, eb-5, exit strategy, florida, green card, I-526, Irish, permanent residence, Relocation, removal of conditions, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
June 3rd, 2010 |
 Does the location of EB-5 Regional Center program matter? The location of the regional center and the center’s programs is sometimes thought to be irrelevant to EB-5 regional center investors. It’s easy to make that assumption because investing in a regional center means that you have the freedom to live anywhere in the United States. However, regardless of where you live, the location of a regional center and its projects does impact on your investment and visa success.
First of all, the location of the center and more specifically, the particular project that you are investing in matters because the amount of your required qualifying investment depends on that location. Your minimum investment will be either $500,000 or $1 million depending on the location of the project. The lower figure applies only to Targeted Employment Areas (TEA) and designated rural geographic regions.
It is imperative to make a distinction between the location of the regional center and the location of the project itself. It is entirely possible that projects within a given regional center will have different investment minimums depending on where the money is actually invested. You cannot assume that just because a center’s offices are located in an area that meets the $500,000 investment criteria that the project funds will be invested there. You can also not assume that just because the last project was invested in a TEA or rural area that the next project will take place in a similarly qualifying area. The investment minimum for visa approval could vary quite easily from one project to the next.
These are the basic reasons to consider the location of a project, but there are reasons that go deeper.
A regional center can be greatly influenced by their location and the location of their investments. There are tangible and intangible influences of the region where your center operates that may come into play. Factors like business climate, property markets, work force, local and state support of the project, and the presence or absence of worthwhile investment recipients can all make or break a project that sounds excellent on paper. Add to this the more fluid factors like public perception of the center, its projects, and even immigration and the EB-5 program itself, and suddenly something that looks good as a business plan can be much more tenuous as a dual-purpose investment and immigration vehicle.
Another very important consideration is the proposed exit strategy for the project. The location of a center can have a tremendous impact when it comes time to try to exit your investment at a profit. This is one of the areas that centers often gloss over.
Often the only way to know how a regional center’s location may impact upon its investments and investors is to take a lot of time getting to know the region, its potential, and its personality “quirks”. Actually physically visiting these regions is the preferable way to get to know the pros and cons of the particular area, and to know what other factors need to be looked into further. Taking that time can bring critical issues to light that would not come up through paper research. This is one area where proven, impartial advisors can prove their particular worth, because it is often unrealistic for a single investor to undertake this kind of travel and physically present due diligence on his or her own.
On the other hand, it is the job of the advisor to amass this kind of knowledge, and to know the centers, their regions, and the potential impact of that location on all of that center’s projects. So, while it may seem like a regional center’s location shouldn’t need to matter to you because you can live anywhere, you can see that in fact that location is still a big consideration. It may not come into play as you choose where to live, but it will certainly come into play as you decide the best, safest, most appropriate place to invest your money so that obtaining your visa and being cleared of conditional status and obtaining your Green Card is not a struggle.
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Tags: eb-5, exit strategy, green card, Immigration, regional center, TEA, united states, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
May 20th, 2010 |
 A clear exit strategy for the return of their $500,000 investment is for many EB-5 immigrant investors, one of the most important considerations when selecting which EB5 regional center to choose.
If you follow the information on the website WhichEB5 you will already know that after a time period, which can range from five or more years (Sometimes the time period is very ambiguous) you may be eligible to divest yourself of the investment you made in a regional center in order to get your green card. The most important words above are “you may be eligible”.
For the purpose of this discussion let us assume that you want to get your funds back. Of course, if the regional center is paying you a handsome dividend you may want to take advantage of that long past the time you could get your money back. With many of these programs that is not likely to be the case.
So what are the options? Some regional centers have a clear and definitive idea of how the limited partnership (this is the typical business structure of a regional center) will be dissolved. It is important however to make sure that the plan for dissolution is sound from a business perspective and not simply designed to look good on paper.
Some centers might state that the limited partners (insert “you” in there) CAN sell their holding to a willing buyer. This is where it may get tricky. Let’s look at one possible scenario; Imaging you are a fractional (i.e. 1/20, 1/100 or whatever the total number of partners/investors are) and you want to sell. How many other people in the same investment partnership agree with you? What if they don’t? Would you be able to sell your fractional share if none, or a limited number of others, do? Are you starting to see some of the elements of a slightly difficult situation?
As we have mentioned before, this is not a simple decision and one regional center may or may not be better, in your eyes, than another. It comes down to having all the facts carefully explained and you fully understanding all the elements that go into a successful EB-5 regional center program.
We can go through with you which centers have repaid their investors in full, which have not and which have a fixed term repayment term clearly laid out.
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Tags: eb-5, eb5, exit strategy, immigrant investor, investment, regional center, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
March 1st, 2010 |
 It is interesting to look beyond the headlines used to promote regional center programs.
Here are some example headlines we found and the reasons you need to explore deeper to expose ALL the details before you choose a regional center for your EB-5 visa.
1. “The only Designated Regional Center in the U.S. controlled and supervised by State Government.”
The Regional Center investments that operate under the banner of a state can sometimes confuse prospective investors in terms of the implications of this status. For example, has the “State Government” any responsibility for repayment of the investment? Some investors assume such designation may offer a safety net. Another question might be: What role does the state government play in the exit strategy regarding the then value of the investment?
Some regional centers, at different times, have made this claim. One program that operated under a State banner is reportedly the subject of litigation. This could raise raises questions as to how far the “state” supervised the program.
2. “A 100% success record for EB-5 Visa approval and faster approval times.”
Many centers have a 100% successful track record, at least at I-526 stage. As regards faster approval times; centers generally get approvals within the USCIS average time lines however, for specific reasons relating to “Requests for Further Evidence” RFEs, and the nature of some programs, some centers have had longer approval times.
3. “In 2009, a total of 4,218 wealthy investors from outside the U.S. successfully applied for and received an EB-5 visa. But many are left asking what has accounted for the recent interest the program has been receiving”?
Firstly a few points regarding these figures which may seem a little pedantic but are important for reasons that can be explained.
The figure quoted includes the spouse and children of the investors; it does not mean there were actually 4218 individual investments in regional centers. - Many investors have a spouse and at least one child so the number of actual investors is nearer a third of the total number of visas. Secondly, the figure for 2009 contains a substantial number who invested in 2008; delays in processing carried these over into 2009.
The main change to be aware of in the figures for 2009 is actually the nationality of investors, with a greater proportion of Chinese investors in particular. China has seen a significant sales focus by a number of regional centers and their agents based in China. This has meant certain programs have mainly Chinese investors whose particular motivation and awareness may have implications.
4. “The regional center returned my investment in three years.”
Three years is generally unrealistic given current review times. That is unless the client is selling out at the moment their I-829 petition is approved. This could be extremely dangerous
Andrew Bartlett and Stephen Parnell are authors of Green Card via the Red Carpet. You can read excerpts of the book at our book website and/or contact the authors via Which EB5.
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Tags: andrew bartlett, china, Chinese investors, eb-5, exit strategy, Green Card via the Red Carpet, I-526, I-829, investors, litigation, regional center, request for further evidence, RFE, state government, stephen parnell, uscis, value of the investment, visa, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
February 2nd, 2010 |
 Does the EB5 Visa Program need an Exit Strategy? The exit strategy has been a key consideration for many, not all, EB5 clients. All too often this information has been hard to tie down, with very little specific evidence of a definitive exit strategy from many Regional Center programs.
For many people the security of their $500,000 principal, and when it will be returned to them, is of prime importance alongside the obtaining and maintaining of their visa.
As many regional center programs have not been in operation for a sufficient time period it has been difficult, until very recently, to examine the hard facts in this area.
There have certainly been a number of surprises. Such as one program potentially looking to repay an excess over the $500,000 due to specific circumstances tied in with the nature of the project. Another program has repaid the full principal amount as laid out in the exit strategy. One regional center is planning to repay funds prior to the planned date and yet another has repaid less than the sum invested.
It is certainly very useful to have this information, particularly in light of programs which are very much dependent on the economic outlook. For more information on Regional Center exit strategies contact Which EB5
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Tags: eb-5, eb5, exit strategy, regional center, visa, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
April 16th, 2009 |
The location of the regional center and the center’s proposed projects is often (mistakenly) thought to be irrelevant to EB-5 regional center investors. It’s easy to make that assumption, because unlike the standalone investment investing in a regional center means that you have the freedom to live anywhere in the United States, as far away or as close to your investment project as you like. Regardless of where you have your heart set on living, the location of a regional center and its projects does still have a definite impact potential on your investment and visa success. There are a couple of reasons why this is true.
First of all, the location of the center, and more specifically the particular project that you are investing in, matters because the amount of your required qualifying investment depends on that location. We’ve discussed this before as you’ll recall, your minimum investment will be either $500,000 or $1 million depending on the location of the project. The lower figure applies only to Targeted Employment Areas and designated rural geographic regions.
It is imperative to make a distinction between the location of the regional center and the location of the project itself. It is entirely possible that projects within a given regional center will have different investment minimums depending on where the money is actually invested. You cannot assume that just because a center’s offices are located in an area that meets lower-level investment minimums that the project funds will be invested there. You can also not assume that just because the last project was invested in a TEA or rural area that the next project will take place in a similarly qualifying area. The investment minimum for visa approval could vary quite easily from one project to the next.
These are the most basic reasons to consider the location of a project, but there are reasons that go deeper. These are the more in-depth considerations that an impartial advisor will research to determine how they apply to your situation. Let’s expand on that.
A regional center can be greatly influenced by their location and the location of their investments. There are many tangible and intangible influences of the region where your center operates that may come into play. Factors like business climate, property markets, workforce, local and state support of the project, and the presence or absence of worthwhile investment recipients can all make or break a project that sounds very good on paper. Add to this the more fluid factors like public perception of the center, its projects, and even immigration and the EB5 program itself, and suddenly something that looks very good as a business plan can be much more tenuous as a dual-purpose investment and immigration vehicle.
Another very important consideration is the proposed exit strategy for the project. The location of a center can have a tremendous impact when it comes time to try to exit your investment at a profit. This is one of the areas that centers often gloss over. Your impartial advisor, however, will not take them at their words, and will explore and discuss with you all the potential impacts of location for both now and the future.
Often the only way to know how a regional center’s location may impact upon its investments and investors is to take a lot of time getting to know the region, its potential, and its personality “quirks”. Actually physically visiting these regions is the only way to get to know the pros and cons of the particular area, and to know what other factors need to be looked into further. Taking that time can bring critical issues to light that would not come up through paper research. This is one area where impartial advisers can prove their particular worth, because as we’ve already established there is no possible way for a single investor to undertake this kind of travel and physically present due diligence on his or her own.
The next blog will take a look at the best way to choose where to invest, who to trust.
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Tags: Add new tag, eb-5, eb5, exit strategy, Immigration, investment, regional center, targeted employment areas, TEA, united states, uscis, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
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