The EB-5 visa
The US authorities created the EB-5 program to boost the US economy through job creation through capital investment from foreign investors.
The EB-5 visa provides a “green card” for foreigners who invest money in the United States, which can also then lead to obtaining a US passport. To get an EB-5, a person must invest at least USD 900,000 and create at least 10 jobs.
The investor and his / her spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 will be eligible for a green card.
It should be noted that to obtain this visa there are two options:
- Investment in an “EB-5 Regional Center”, which is an investment vehicle that is a public or private entity that has registered with the authorities to manage EB-5 investment projects. These are high risk investments for two reasons:
- The financial risk. The underlying project does not guarantee a positive return on investment.
- Immigration risk. A residence visa cannot be guaranteed even after funds have been invested. There is still a risk that the Regional Center may fail to meet regulation requirements and no longer qualify for the program.
- Set up your own company and create 10 jobs with it.
All EB-5 investments should lead to the creation of 10 full-time US jobs for at least two years. The investment required under the EB-5 program is USD$ 900,000 or USD$ 1.8 million, depending on the location of the EB-5 project:
- If the EB-5 project is located in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA), the investment will be USD$ 900,000 USD.
- If the EB-5 project is not in an TEA, the minimum investment will be USD$ 1.8 million.
The E2 visa
- The E-2 Investor Visa allows a person to enter and work within the United States based on an investment made in the US. This visa must generally be renewed every two years with no limit to the number of renewals. The investment must be “substantial” , but there is no legal minimum.
The E-2 visa is only possible for people holding a passport issued by one of these countries:
Albania Germany Argentina Armenia Australia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Belgium Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Cameroon Canada Chile Taiwan Colombia Congo South Korea Costa Rica Croatia Denmark (excluding Greenland) Egypt Ecuador Spain Estonia Ethiopia Finland France Georgia Grenade Honduras Iran Ireland Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Kosovo Austria Latvia Liberia Lithuania Luxembourg fruit salad Morocco Mexico Moldova Mongolia Montenegro Norway Oman Pakistan Panama Paraguay Netherlands Philippines Poland Slovak Republic Czech republic Romania United Kingdom Senegal Serbia Singapore Slovenia Sri Lanka Sweden Swiss Suriname Thailand Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Ukraine Yugoslavia The E-2 visa is a temporary visa, while the EB-5 “green card” is permanent. Family members of the E-2 visa holder are allowed to enter the United States with the visa holder. This category includes the spouse of the visa holder and unmarried minor children under 21 years of age.