Key attributes of the visa include:

• A $900,000 minimum investment is required
• The entire $900,000 must be invested without deduction for legal fees, commissions, wire transfer charges or other expenses.
• The investment capital can come from any lawful source, including gift, loan, sale of property, pension, inheritance, etc.
• Spouse and unmarried children under age 21 receive their own EB-5 visas.

• Funds can be provided via loans, gifts, sale of property, inheritance or any other legal source.
• The investment must create 10 new direct or indirect jobs. All Seattle Regional Center programs produce jobs substantially in excess of USCIS requirements.
• Passive investment is acceptable, with no requirement for day-to-day management.
• Projects provide policy-making role and substantial investor voting control.

• No material change permitted from investment project submitted with visa application.
• Exit from investment possible once employment figures are verified.
• The investment may be secured or speculative, as long as the capital is technically at risk.

Candidates for the Visa

The EB-5 visa is the best choice for a wide variety of people:

• Those requiring certainty that U.S. permanent residency or citizenship will be available to them.
• Those requiring permanent residency on an expedited basis.
• Students, employees, investors, diplomats and others who are already in the U.S. on expiring non-immigrant visas.
• Those seeking a financial or personal safe-haven.
• Those wishing to travel freely to and from the U.S.
• Self-sufficient retirees.

• Students wishing to pay reduced in-state tuition at public universities.
• Graduate students with job offers but H-1B quota problems.
• Those seeking a permanent visa solution for their spouse and children.
• Those without existing family ties in the U.S.
• Those wishing to sponsor relatives in the future for U.S. residency and citizenship.
• Those without specific educational levels, job skills or special abilities.

• Those seeking permanent access to U.S. medical or educational systems.
• Those unwilling to deal with the risk and uncertainty of non-immigrant visa renewals.
• Those qualifying for permanent residency through family or employment, but shut out by quotas or long waiting lists.
• Investors wishing to purchase and use vacation real estate or second residences in the U.S.
• Those with limited immigration options for legal status in the United States.