Guide
The EB-5 immigrant investor visa
EB-5 gives an investor, their spouse, and their children under 21 a U.S. green card in exchange for an at-risk investment that creates ten American jobs. There is no treaty country requirement and no employer sponsor — but the capital, the jobs, and the paper trail all have to hold up.
Targeted employment area
$800,000
Rural, high-unemployment, or infrastructure
Standard
$1,050,000
Everywhere else
What you have to prove
No treaty country needed
EB-5 is open to nationals of every country, including India, China, Brazil, and Nigeria — the countries shut out of the E-2. What varies by country is the wait, not the eligibility.
$800,000 or $1,050,000
The minimum is $800,000 if the project sits in a targeted employment area (rural, high-unemployment, or an infrastructure project) and $1,050,000 otherwise. These amounts are set by statute and adjust for inflation.
Capital fully at risk
The money must be irrevocably committed to the new commercial enterprise and genuinely exposed to loss. Guaranteed returns, redemption rights, or collateral tied to the investment can disqualify the petition.
Ten full-time jobs
Each investor must create or preserve ten full-time positions for U.S. workers. A direct investment counts only W-2 employees of the business. A regional center project may also count indirect and induced jobs from an economist's model.
Lawful source of funds
You must trace every dollar — salary, business income, a property sale, or a documented gift or loan — through bank records, tax returns, and contracts. This is where most petitions get questioned.
Conditional green card first
An approved I-526E leads to a two-year conditional green card for you, your spouse, and unmarried children under 21. Filing Form I-829 near the end of those two years removes the conditions once the investment and jobs are proven.
Regional center or direct?
Regional center
You invest in a USCIS-designated sponsor's project alongside other investors. Indirect and induced jobs count, involvement is passive, and set-aside visa categories often move faster — but you rely on the sponsor's structure and exit.
Direct investment
You invest in and manage your own new commercial enterprise. You keep control and ownership, but only W-2 jobs at that business count toward the ten, so payroll has to be real and documented.
How the process runs
- 1
Choose the route
Regional center project or your own direct enterprise.
- 2
Assemble source of funds
Trace the capital with bank, tax, and sale records.
- 3
Invest or escrow
Commit the $800k / $1.05M into the enterprise.
- 4
File Form I-526E
The petition proving investment, jobs, and lawful funds.
- 5
Consular processing or adjustment
Interview abroad, or adjust status if already in the U.S.
- 6
Two-year conditional residence
Live and work anywhere in the U.S. while the jobs are created.
- 7
File Form I-829
Remove conditions and receive the permanent green card.
Set-aside categories and waiting times
Congress reserves part of the annual EB-5 quota for specific project types. Which bucket a project falls into affects how long you wait for a visa number.
- Rural
- 20% of EB-5 visas each year. Currently the fastest category and priority-processed by USCIS.
- High unemployment
- 10% of visas, reserved for TEA projects in areas above 150% of national unemployment.
- Infrastructure
- 2% of visas, for government-administered public infrastructure projects.
- Unreserved
- The remaining 68%, where investors born in China and India face the longest waits.
EB-5 waiting times depend on where you were born, not where you live.
Common questions
- How long does EB-5 take?
- I-526E adjudication commonly runs one to three years, and rural set-aside petitions are processed first. After approval, the wait for a visa number depends on your country of birth. Conditional residence then lasts two years before I-829.
- Can I work or live anywhere?
- Yes. A conditional green card carries the same right to live, work, and study anywhere in the U.S. as a permanent one, and spouses and children under 21 are included.
- Can I get my money back?
- Only when the project exits, and never on a guarantee — guaranteed redemption breaks the at-risk requirement. Hold periods of five to seven years are typical, and the capital can be lost.
- Can I move from an E-2 to EB-5?
- Yes, and it is a common path. Investors often run an E-2 business first and later file EB-5 — sometimes using the same enterprise if it can support the higher investment and ten jobs.
EB-5 readiness checklist
The points every I-526E petition has to satisfy before you file.
0 / 8 done
For your own preparation only. It is not legal, tax, or investment advice.
See EB-5 projects and businesses
Listings tagged EB-5 show the minimum investment, TEA status, and job creation each sponsor reports.
Browse EB-5 listingsMyVisaBiz is an advertising platform. We are not a law firm, not an immigration adviser, and not a securities broker-dealer. EB-5 offerings are securities, are not registered with the SEC, and can lose value. Nothing here is legal or investment advice — review any project with a licensed immigration attorney and an independent financial adviser.