EB-5 Meeting Between USCIS and AILA

In a recent meeting between the USCIS Field Operations Directorate and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the parties discussed the future of EB-5. Some highlights of the meetings are listed below.

What did the meeting cover?

USCIS stated that the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate will conduct the EB-5 site visits. These site visits will become a part of the Form I-829 adjudication process. Alternatively, the IPO's compliance team will run the Regional Center compliance audits. They also acknowledged the backlog of Form I-829s pending. USCIS stated that they are training individuals as both economists and adjudicators to speed up the process.

USCIS stated that a final edition of the Policy Memorandum soon, regarding job creation and sustainment of investment for EB-5. At this point, the applicant must sustain the investment for two years up to filing, or until approval. This can add an additional 2 or 3 years to the process. The EB-5 community has expressed the need for clear and immediate guidance on this issue.

USCIS discussed the new policy on changing the geographic area of a Regional Center. This change requires a formal amendment and a fee, along with approval.

Overall, it is positive to see that USCIS is providing AILA with information, and that USCIS seems to be taking steps forward in resolving issues for the EB-5 community.