The current sunset date for the EB-5 Regional Center Program is September 30, 2019. Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4378, which is a Continuing Resolution (“CR”) to continue funding the government – including the EB-5 Program – from September 30, 2019 to November 21, 2019. The CR is expected to clear the Senate and receive the president’s signature before the September 30th deadline, avoiding a government shutdown.
This is welcome news for anxious EB-5 investors rushing to file before the new EB-5 regulations take effect on November when the minimum investment amount increases to $1.8 million for most projects. See Behring’s 10 Step Guide to Filing Your I-526 Petition in 10 Days
Per-Country Cap Relief Blocked In Senate Again
In July, the House passed H.R. 1044, known as the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. The bill proposes to eliminate country caps for employment-based visas, including immigrant investor visas under the EB-5 program. The goal is to provide backlog relief for H-1B visa holders seeking to obtain a green card through EB-2 and EB-3, particularly those India must wait decades for an EB-2/EB-3 green card. However, the potential impact on EB-5 is mixed. While it’d provide a welcome reduction to the backlog for Chinese investors, any new EB-5 investors would immediately face up to an 8-year wait. See analysis of HR 1044 impact on EB-5 at Lucid Text.
Though HR 1044 received bipartisan support in the House, yesterday it was blocked a second time in the Senate. With no relief in sight for H1-B visa holders facing long backlogs, EB-5 still remains the fastest means to obtain a US green card.
Time Is Running Out
At the time of this article’s posting, there are only 62 days left before the EB-5 Program changes drastically with a 3.6x increase in the minimum investment amount. Call the Behring team to discuss your investment strategies for a successful EB-5 petition.