introduction
In 1990, Congress created the fifth employment-based preference (EB-5) immigrant visa category for qualified foreign investors. The underlying premise for the EB5 visa category was to encourage foreign investment into the United States that would in turn stimulate and benefit the U.S. economy by creating jobs. This category was authorized pursuant Section 203(b)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. This visa option not only provides wealthy foreign nationals an opportunity to invest in a profitable business in the United States but also a vehicle to immigrate to the United States. This visa category has proven to be popular for several reasons, with the primary reasons being:
· Allows individuals with no familial ties to immigrate to the United States;
· Allows individuals to circumvent the lengthy processing time for family based immigration visas;
· Allows individuals who do not have credentials to qualify for employment based immigration to immigrate to the United States;
· Allows individuals to attain U.S. Citizenship within five years of making the investment (a much quicker option than the other immigrant visas)
· Allows individuals with no familial ties to immigrate to the United States;
· Allows individuals to circumvent the lengthy processing time for family based immigration visas;
· Allows individuals who do not have credentials to qualify for employment based immigration to immigrate to the United States;
· Allows individuals to attain U.S. Citizenship within five years of making the investment (a much quicker option than the other immigrant visas)