New USCIS Immigrant Fee

Posted on February 13th, 2013

I have added this new cost to the list of EB-5 visa program costs on our website.  If you are in the US and apply with the I-485 form for an Adjustment of Status, this fee will not apply to you.  For those applying for the EB5 visa whilst outside the USA, the EB-5 Embassy Interview is part of the process to the EB5 Green Card.  We explain the process on our FAQ page.

The list of costs can be found under Decision-making Process and also on our Home Page.

This link to the US Embassy in London explains that, as of 1st February 2013, the USCIS will be charging $165 to all those who receive an immigrant visa to the USA.  You will be sent instructions about how to pay after completing the interview.

 

US Health Care Reform will affect EB5 permanent residents

Posted on February 13th, 2013

To understand better what it means for you, please see this pamphlet by Consumer Reports:  Health Reform:  Seven Things You Need To Know.

You can find a lot of information about the new Obama Care package from our Useful Links page.  On the 1st of January 2014 most Americans and persons with LPR status (all EB-5 visa holders are LPRs; that is,  they have Legal Permanent Residency) must take out health insurance.

From October 2013 health insurance ”Marketplaces” or “Exchanges” will be available online for individuals, families, or small business owners.  In these Marketplaces/Exchanges you will be able to compare insurance packages.

Health insurance companies will no longer be able to discriminate against the older people or those who have chronic health problems and the cost of insurance should no longer be prohibitive.

Consumer Reports is an independent product testing agency, like Which? in the UK.  The good thing about Consumer Reports is that they will continue investigating the new Health Reforms and keep their website updated with important news.

King Street Station & Stadium Place, Seattle

Posted on January 30th, 2013

King Street Station must be one of the most beautiful working stations in all of the US, with its big clock tower outside and early 20th century architectural features  inside.

Our next EB-5 project, an Embassy Suites Hotel by Hilton, will be right next door, to be built on the nearest corner of the Century Link Field Stadium car park (formerly QWest Field).

Seattle has begun investing in its transportation system for a few years now, as discussed in this urban design forum about Seattle Transit.  While celebrating its heritage,  Seattle is bringing itself into the 21st century by making many stations multi-use for trains, buses and light rail.  The light rail link begins at the Airport, to SoDo and Pioneer Square and continues north through the city.

Another modernising project which will enhance the immediate area around American Life’s new EB5 project will be Stadium Place apartments, currently under construction, and seen in this architect’s drawing on the left. American Life’s Hilton Embassy Suites is the larger building on the right.

 For more information about our new Hilton Embassy Suites EB-5 investment, 255 South King Street Limited Partnership, please contact us.

USCIS statistics for the EB-5 visa

Posted on November 12th, 2012

There is a very good website with impartial information about the EB-5 visa and it has just uploaded the USCIS statistics about the Eb5 program:  http://blog.lucidtext.com/2012/11/09/fy2012-eb-5-petition-and-visa-statistics/. 

If you take a look at that website (the Table is easier to read) and then come see what I’ve added here, I hope you will see how most EB-5 visas are taking 9-12 months for I-526 approval.

I have added the columns:
• Adjudicated (Approval+Denials)
• I-526 Backlog
• I-829 Backlog
• Backlog as % of Adjudicated

With the success of American Life’s LA Marriott (I-526 approvals are being issued) we are seeing an decrease in the waiting time for approvals.

Â	Â	USCIS statistics for the EB-5 VisaÂ												Â	Â
Â	Â	I-526					Â	Backlog as % of Adjudicated	I-829					Â	Backlog as % of Adjudicated
Fiscal Year	Â	Receipts	Approvals	Denials	Adjudicated	Approval %	I-526 Backlog	Â	Receipts	Approvals	Denials	Adjudicated	Approval %	I-829 Backlog	Â
2005	Â	332	179	156	335	53%	0	Â	37	184	112	296	62%	0	Â
2006	Â	486	336	124	460	73%	26	6%	89	106	108	214	50%	0	Â
2007	Â	776	473	148	621	76%	181	29%	194	111	49	160	69%	34	21%
2008	Â	1,257	640	120	760	84%	678	89%	390	159	68	227	70%	197	87%
2009	Â	1,028	1,262	207	1,469	86%	237	16%	437	347	56	403	86%	231	57%
2010	Â	1,955	1,369	165	1,534	89%	658	43%	768	274	56	330	83%	669	203%
2011	Â	3,805	1,563	371	1,934	81%	2529	131%	2,345	1,067	46	1,113	96%	1901	171%
2012	Â	6,041	3,677	957	4,634	79%	3936	85%	712	736	60	796	92%	1817	228%
Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â
Grand Total	Â	15,680	9,499	2,248	11,747	81%	25%	Â	4,972	2,984	555	3,539	84%	29%	Â
Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â
Â	Â	Notes	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â
1	Â	The Approval % is the % of the total Adjudicated during the year NOT a % of Receipts.						Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â
2	Â	There is a backlog of 25% of all the I-526 Receipts between 2005-2012.					Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â
3	Â	There is a backlog of 29% of all the I-829 Receipts between 2005-2012.					Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â	Â

Ineligibility for Permanent Residence

Posted on November 8th, 2012

NB:  This is an imprecise list.  If you have any questions about something on this list, you should discuss it with your immigration attorney.  American Life has a Panel of Immigration Attorneys with EB-5 experience.  Please contact us to request the list or for any questions about the EB5 visa.

Offenses that make a person Ineligible for US Visas or US Permanent Residence

- Taken from the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA):

INA: ACT 212 – GENERAL CLASSES OF ALIENS INELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE VISAS AND INELIGIBLE FOR ADMISSION; WAIVERS OF INADMISSIBILLITY

INA weblink:  See ACT 212

 — Health-related grounds.-
——— have a communicable disease of public health significance
——— who has failed to present documentation of having received vaccination against vaccine-preventable diseases, which shall include at least the following diseases: mumps, measles, rubella, polio, tetanus and diphtheria toxoids, pertussis, influenza type B and hepatitis B, and any other vaccinations against vaccine-preventable diseases recommended by the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices,
——— have a physical or mental disorder and behavior associated with the disorder that may pose, or has posed, a threat to the property, safety, or welfare of the alien or others, or
——— have had a physical or mental disorder and a history of behavior associated with the disorder, which behavior has posed a threat to the property, safety, or welfare of the alien or others and which behavior is likely to recur or to lead to other harmful behavior, or
——— a drug abuser or addict

— Criminal related grounds— Conviction of certain crimes.-
» read more

Offenses Eligible for Deportation

Posted on November 8th, 2012

NB:  This is an imprecise list.  If you have any questions about something on this list, you should discuss it with your immigration attorney.  American Life has a Panel of Immigration Attorneys with EB-5 experience.  Please contact us to request the list or for any questions about the EB5 visa.

Offenses that make US Permanent Residents deportable

- Taken from the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA):

INA: ACT 237 – GENERAL CLASSES OF DEPORTABLE ALIENS

INA weblink:  See ACT 237

— marriage fraud
— document fraud
— domestic violence
— high speed flight from an immigration checkpoint
» read more

American Life Regional Centers

Posted on September 26th, 2012

American Life manages 10 Regional Centers in five States. We currently have one EB-5 investment project which is on hold for a few weeks until after the preliminary hearing of our case against the USCIS.

You can see details of the current investment on our website at the Current EB5 Projects page.  If you would like to see a prospectus, you may.  We will advise everyone on our mailing list when American Life is receiving investment funds again for the project.

We list the 10 American Life Regional Centers here:

Washington
Seattle — American Life Seattle Regional Center [Gold Rainbow, Freedom Fund]
Tacoma — American Life Ventures Tacoma
Everett  — American Life Ventures Everett
Lakewood — Lakewood Regional Center

California
Los Angeles — American Life Development Company, LLC [Riverside PUMA Area]
Los Angeles — Regional Center Properties, Inc.
Los Angeles — Regional Center Management Los Angeles

Georgia
Atlanta — Atlanta EB-5 Regional Center

New York
Buffalo and Niagara — Buffalo Regional Center

Florida
Miami — American Life Investments

Holidays for EB-5 permanent residents

Posted on August 13th, 2012

In years past it was possible for US permanent residents to spend relatively little time in the US as long as they 1) never left the US for more than 179 days at any one time, 2) paid US taxes, and  3) showed other indications of permanence such as opening US bank accounts, buying a house, getting a driver’s license, etc.

Recently however, immigration attorneys have alerted us to the fact that a stricter interpretation of the rules is becoming more common.  The US immigration service could review the status of a permanent resident if he or she spends more than 6 months (179 days) of any year outside of the US.  If you are a permanent resident and need advice about this change, please consult your immigration attorney.

So, if you are outside the US for over 179 consecutive — or non-consecutive — days, it’s important to remember the 179 days away rule.  A handy tool I’ve found for calculating the number of days in a holiday, vacation or other trip is either the Day Counter, and there are a few other nifty calculators on the same page.

When we find important or interesting information about the EB5 visa process, we make the information available to all — via the Useful Links page of our website.

The EB-5 Visa Pilot Program – Extension

Posted on August 3rd, 2012

As we’ve stated before, we expect the EB-5 program to be extended when the current legislation sunsets in September.  Democrats and Republicans want to  support new business capital and job creation, especially during the upcoming presidential election.

Business Capital.  Over 1300 EB-5 immigrant investors have invested in commercial property managed by American Life.  Visit the American Life YouTube channel to see some of the results of EB-5 investments. In whatever form the EB-5 program takes after 30th September 2012, American Life is committed to its immigrant investors and, through its 10 Regional Centers, will ensure they have investment choices that offer sound income and capital gain opportunities.

Extension.  Four years ago the EB-5 Pilot Program was up for renewal.  It was an election year.  I believe there was legislation in the House and Senate to make it permanent.  But, Congress was busy with the election, so a extension of the Program was tagged onto a non-controversial bill.  It was extended four times in 2008-9: 1) for six months 2) for six months 3) for one month 4) then renewed for three years.  Through it all, the EB5 visa program kept going, people invested, green cards were granted and conditions were removed. 

Permanent Program.  The bill to make the program permanent has now been converted into a non-controversial bill to extend the EB-5 Program for three years.  That’s not what we wanted, but it will do.

3 Year Entension most likely this September.  Yesterday, 2nd August, the US Senate voted uncontroversially to extend the EB-5 Pilot Program for three years and it is expected to be voted on in the House of Representatives, without debate, upon their return from Summer Recess after 9 September.  We now think ‘sundown’ is very unlikely and an uninterruped EB-5 Program very possible. 

 

USCIS approved Regional Centers allow indirect jobs

Posted on July 30th, 2012

Regional Centers are attractive to EB-5 applicants because an investment within a Regional Center allows the EB-5 visa applicant to include indirect jobs, not just direct jobs, within their job creation requirement. 

The USCIS defines a Regional Center as any economic entity, public or private, . . . :

• focusing on a geographical region within the United States for economic growth;
• where jobs will be created directly or indirectly through capital investments;
• which will have a positive impact on the regional or national economy.

As of today the USCIS have 226 authorised Regional Centers in 41 states, plus the District of Columbia and the island territory of Guam.

American Life manages 10 Regional Centers in 5 states.  See our Current EB-5 Projects page for the EB5 qualifying investments available now.  American Life is proud of it’s record as the longest continually running Regional Center — since 1996 — with over 1000 investors in 30+ EB-5 investments.

If you’d like more information about the EB5 visa, how to invest for your green card, and American Life’s EB-5 qualifying investments, sign up for our EB-5 brochure or contact Richard directly.