USICS's New EB-5 RIA Implementation Announcement & Listening Session By Carolyn Lee On April 29, 2022, USCIS published EB-5 Questions and Answers (Q&A) answering some of the pressing questions on EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act interpretations, including regional center re-designations and investor petitions associated with regional centers, both pre- and post-RIA. Previously, USCIS [...]
EB-5 REFORM AND INTEGRITY ACT OF 2022-FAQS Check out Carolyn Lee's EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act FAQs posted on the IIUSA website. Also listed below: QUESTION # 1: What are the major impacts of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (“RIA”) to existing investors (those who are waiting for their immigrant visas [...]
Possible Sunset Effects on EB-5 Cases Come June 30, 2021 By Carolyn Lee This is a practical piece. I strongly support S. 831, the bill sponsored by Senators Grassley (R-IA) and Leahy (D-VT) to extend the regional center program for 5 years, introduce strong but reasonable program oversight, and grant generous investor protections [...]
Observations for January 2021 Visa Bulletin China FAD is August 15, 2015, unmoved from September 2020. Note: the EB-5 regional center program was reauthorized after Visa Bulletin publication to June 30, 2021. Vietnam FAD is September 15, 2017, having advanced 2 weeks since December 2020. China DFF is December 15, 2015, unmoved from [...]
Updated EB-5 Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers) brought to you by Carolyn Lee PLLC. Introduction: The October 2020 Visa Bulletin brought important new information to the EB-5 Community regarding the EB-5 visa backlog and visa availability for the rest of Fiscal Year 2021 and beyond. This Updated CLP FAQ reflects insights from the October 2020 [...]
Carolyn Lee and IIUSA's Joint Analysis of the October 2020 Visa Bulletin -- What Does It Mean for EB-5? September 29, 2020 The fiscal year 2021 starts October 1 and the October 2020 Visa Bulletin is published. There are over 120,000 additional visa numbers spilling over into the Employment-Based categories, EB-1 through EB-5. What is the impact on [...]
Material Change I’ve written extensively about the faulty legal premise girding USCIS’s material change policy.[1] Fundamentally, those articles advance a simple point: USCIS should use authority correctly in formulating its policies. This EB-5 Note on material change is more immediately practical. In the era of EB-5 backlogs, EB-5 projects and the USCIS material change policy are [...]
EB-5 Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers) brought to you by Carolyn Lee PLLC. Question 1: What is an EB-5 visa? Answer: An EB-5 visa is a U.S. immigrant (meaning U.S. permanent residency) visa. Another name for an “immigrant visa” is a “green card.” There are different green card categories, based primarily on family-based relationships or [...]
Note: This article originally published June 2017 on ilw.com just before June 14, 2017 USCIS Policy Manual Update released. Carolyn Lee PLLC is re-posting the article by popular demand. By Carolyn Lee* There is much confusion today about whether EB-5 investors’ funds must be “redeployed” if it’s repaid to the new commercial enterprise before [...]
On July 25, 2018, Kurzban, Kurzban, Weinger, Tetzeli & Pratt, P.A. filed a lawsuit against the United States challenging the way the U.S. Government counts EB-5 visas.2The suit can have profound consequences. If successful, the visa backlog disappears. Even without winning, the suit has the potential to galvanize stakeholders to find other solutions to the [...]
