IN THIS GUIDE · Ask the regional center the questions the officer will ask
Start with the EB-5 eligibility and application overview
Confirm the amount and the designation before believing the brochure
The Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 sets the standard investment at US$1,050,000 and the reduced amount at US$800,000 for a project in a targeted employment area or a qualifying infrastructure project, with a scheduled adjustment from January 1, 2027. The family should ask for the project's TEA evidence, which under current rules is determined by USCIS against census-tract data, rather than accept a marketing statement that the project is rural or high-unemployment. Rural and high-unemployment projects also carry reserved visa allocations under the Act, which affects waiting times; the family should verify the current allocation and the project's category against official sources before relying on either.
Ask how the ten jobs are counted
Every EB-5 investor must be credited with at least ten full-time jobs for qualifying US workers. A regional-center project can count direct, indirect and induced jobs shown by an accepted economic methodology, which is why the project's economic report matters more than its glossy summary. The family should ask how many investors the project accepts and how many jobs the model projects, because the ratio determines whether there is a margin if construction runs slow or spending falls short. They should also ask whether jobs are attributed by construction spending or by operations, and over what period, since the timing affects when the removal-of-conditions evidence will exist.
Trace the orchard sale as the source of funds
The investor must show the capital was obtained lawfully and trace its path into the new commercial enterprise. For the family, that means the land sale agreement, the closing statement, the deposit into their account, tax filings reflecting the disposition, and the wire to the project's escrow, each reconciling to the next. Capital must be at risk and, under the Act, is expected to remain invested for at least two years; the subscription documents describe when and how redemption might occur, and the family should read those pages, because a guaranteed return would undercut the at-risk requirement. Administrative fees paid to the regional center are separate from the invested capital and do not count toward it.
Know what the petition gives and what it does not
Approval of the investor petition is not residence. The family then completes immigrant-visa processing at a consulate or, if lawfully in the United States when a visa number is available, may file for adjustment, which the Act permits concurrently in some cases. Admission brings two years of conditional residence for the investor, the spouse and unmarried children under 21, after which Form I-829 is filed in the ninety days before the second anniversary with evidence that the jobs were created and the capital sustained. The investor must be engaged in management or policy formulation, which a limited-partner interest with the statutory rights can satisfy; passive expectation is not enough. A child approaching 21 needs Child Status Protection Act analysis before the plan is fixed.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.