001+954-727-9800
Header

SIGN UP FOR
OUR NEWSLETTER

Enter your email below to join our mailing list:



EB-5 News Archive for the ‘Job Creation with EB-5 Visas News’ Category








Senator Leahy Introduces EB-5 Amendment for Vote

May 20, 2013 @ 12:30 pm
Posted by Exclusive Visas

May 13, 2013 – Senator Leahy (D) Vermont, introduced an Amendment to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill, (S. 744) addressing how indirect and direct EB-5 jobs are documented.

The current rule requires investors to document with econometric evidence that specific benchmarks and milestones in the economic report have been met, particularly job creation.

Senator Leahy’s Amendment proposes: a presumption that 10 indirect jobs have been created per investor at the I-829 stage providing evidence that the investor’s money has been spent in the regional center project.

Many EB-5 professionals believe Senator Leahy’s Amendment will provide much needed flexibility to the regional center program’s job creation requirements. However, Senator Leahy’s Amendment is not without opposition.

Senator Grassley (R) Iowa, has introduced an Amendment (to Senator Leahy’s Amendment) that many industry leaders believe will effectively keep the current practice in tact – investors at the I-829 stage are required to provide evidence that they have created 10 indirect or direct jobs.

Senator Grassley’s amendment also requires regional centers to utilize the Employment Verification System (E-Verify) and authorizes the Fraud Detection and Nationality Security Directorate (FDNS) to conduct random site visits and compliance audits of Regional Centers.

The Amendments are set to be voted on, on Thursday May 16th.

 



What if my EB-5 Petition is denied for “Project” Reasons?

May 10, 2013 @ 12:00 pm
Posted by Exclusive Visas

According to the USCIS, unlike I-526 denial due to Investor issues (ill-gotten funds, OFAC listed, illegal occupation, criminal conviction, etc.)  where it is typically doubtful a second application will be successful, the EB-5 Investor may reapply for another project if the EB-5 applicant’s I-526 petition is denied for “Project” reasons (insufficient job creation, etc).

uncertaintyWhile most applications are returned by USCIS (unapproved) to petitioners with Requests for Evidence (RFE) an RFE is not a denial in the eyes of USCIS. It is simply a next step in the process of developing the petition. Each evidentiary issue in question is to be addressed by the applicant and then submitted back to USCIS for eventual approval. 

Unlike a true Denial, most I-526 RFEs can be overcome. However, RFE issues that involve the regional center program or project may not be so easy to resolve. If they cannot be resolved the case could be denied altogether. In many cases it may be better to withdraw an I-526 petition endangered because of program or project issues and refile, rather than appeal or fight USCIS.

Last year the approval percentage for I-526 petitions was only 79 percent. No matter how carefully a specific EB-5 project is carried out many factors, both within and beyond the control of a specific EB-5 project can adversely affect the EB-5 project and its investors.

According to the USCIS, its Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) has jurisdiction over the appeals from decisions on most immigration petitions and applications that are entered by USCIS regional service centers and district offices.

There are numerous types of petitions and applications within the AAO’s jurisdiction, including employment-based immigration petitions, various waivers, legalization, and temporary protected status applications. The AAO produces appellate decisions that provide fair and legally supportable resolutions of individual applications and petitions for immigration benefits. These decisions provide guidance to applicants, petitioners, practitioners and government officials in the correct interpretation of immigration law, regulations and policy.

Once a case is denied, it is very hard to overcome the reasons for the denial and get it approved. This can delay the immigration process for up to a year. Furthermore, it is commonly held by industry insiders that AAO will never reach a different conclusion than the one originally reached by USCIS. In fact: AAO has never overturned USCIS’ final decision. Therefore, appealing the case to AAO is seen as futile and therefore not recommended.

Luckily, I-526 denials are not fatal. “Applicants always have the option of withdrawing a currently filed I-526 petition in order to correct problems. “Applicants should take action promptly to address reasons for the denial in order to preserve their rights. The file however, must be resubmitted and the process restarted costing the applicant valuable time, money, and energy,” according to Joe Sloboda, Vice President of Exclusive Visas, a Weston, Florida-based EB-5 consultancy.   

The EB-5 process can be arduous and confusing. The entire process is a vast combination of timelines, deadlines, tax returns, supporting documentation, and due diligence involving, immigration attorneys, the USCIS and the SEC. It is not a world anyone should attempt to navigate without an experienced expert at their side.

An Exclusive Visas Expert EB-5 Consultant will cut through the confusion for the investor by explaining how the program works generally and specifically for the candidate. Exclusive Visas brings together all the elements of the program, manages timelines, and gives the client the broadest likelihood of success.

From petitioning the USCIS to choosing a credible project to invest in, Exclusive Visas will see to it that the investor has all the information necessary to give them peace-of-mind while making the best of the EB-5 opportunity.

Don’t wait another day. Click here to contact an Exclusive Visas EB-5 consultant now.



Self Prepared EB-5 Petitions Often Denied by USCIS

May 8, 2013 @ 2:30 pm
Posted by Exclusive Visas

Some EB-5 applicants cannot resist preparing their own EB-5 petitions. They research the program on the web, download the required documents from the USCIS site, prepare the application, collect the documentation, and finally submit their work to USCIS.

According to the United States Citizens & Immigration Services (USCIS) of the 4,176 applications for conditional permanent residency made in 2012, 775 were denied.application-denied

And even though USCIS does not provide reasons for application denials, according to industry insiders many denied I-526 petitions have something in common: They were prepared by the petitioner.

The EB-5 visa is widely known as one of the most complicated, and expensive U.S. visas to obtain.  It’s hard to understand why an applicant would chose to prepare their own EB-5 application. They are about to make an investment of $500,000 or more, move to another country (with their family) and start a new life.

 “If there was ever a time for experienced, professional help in preparing a visa application to a successful outcome, it’s when there’s $500,000 on the table and permanent U.S. residency is at stake,” Said Joe Sloboda, Vice President of Exclusive Visas, a Weston, Florida-based EB-5 consultancy.

“It is not prudent to make such a large investment of time and money, without the advice of a competent experienced professional,” according to Mr. Sloboda.  Professional fees are a small price to pay to protect the petitioner’s investment and future, he said.

Because the EB-5 visa is one of the most difficult visas to file, in all likelihood an I-526 application will probably be denied if the applicant has prepared the documents and business plan, themselves. Once a case is denied, it is harder to overcome the denied reasons and get it approved. This can delay the entire immigration process.

Hiring an EB-5 consultant in the first place can actually save both time and money. “Fixing a petition typically ends up costing applicants more than if they hired professionals in the first place due to the added burden of reviewing and fixing  the petition,” Mr. Sloboda added. And there are no guarantees. The original application may be so problematic that it cannot be solved thereby ruining the applicants chances of a successful petition in the future.

The EB-5 process is not a world anyone should attempt to navigate without an experienced expert at their side. The entire process is a vast combination of timelines, deadlines, tax returns, supporting documentation, and due diligence involving, immigration attorneys, the USCIS and the SEC.

An Exclusive Visas Expert EB-5 Consultant will cut through the confusion for the investor by explaining how the program works generally and specifically for the candidate and what can be expected from the newly proposed reforms. Exclusive Visas brings together all the elements of the program, manages timelines, and gives the client the broadest likelihood of success.

From petitioning the USCIS to choosing a credible project to invest in, Exclusive Visas will see to it that the investor has all the information necessary to give them piece-of-mind while making the best of the EB-5 opportunity.

Don’t wait another day. Click here to contact an Exclusive Visas EB-5 consultant now.

April 22, 2013 – For former British Barrister, Anthony Korda moving from England to the U.S. with his family via the EB-5 visa has been a five year journey. Mr. Korda’s EB-5 experience began as one of the first investors of the Jay Peak Ski Resort project in Vermont.

That journey concluded last Friday when Mr. Korda was sworn in, taking the oath of a U.S. Citizen. “Exclusive Visas salutes Antony Korda and congratulates him as a true EB-5 success story,” said Fred Burgess, President and co-founder of Exclusive Visas, a Weston, Florida-based EB-5 consultancy.

For Mr. Korda the EB-5 program was the answer to his vision of residing permanently in the U.S. – the same vision shared by all EB-5 petitioners. He invested $500,000 in the Vermont Ski Resort which used his investment to capitalize new infrastructure and as a result created the required 10 jobs.

Mr. Korda now permanently resides in Florida with his family where he practices immigration law and helps clients from all over the world find the best, safest American EB-5 projects to invest in. As an expert EB-5 consultant and an affiliated partner of Exclusive Visas, he has helped literally hundreds of immigrants over the past years receive their own EB-5 visas. And as an EB-5 petitioner himself Mr. Korda brings his unique perspective when addressing clients’ challenges associated with emigrating to the U.S. via the EB-5 visa.

“The EB-5 program has given us a new life and, yes, it’s given me a new business to go into,” Mr. Korda said. “And it’s an interesting one, too.”

The EB-5 visa is attractive for high net worth immigrants (willing to invest in a U.S. business) because it does not require having a close relative or a U.S. company willing to sponsor the immigrant, as required by conventional immigrant visas.

While the key features of EB-5 are easily stated the process can be arduous and confusing. The entire process is a vast combination of timelines, deadlines, tax returns, supporting documentation, and due diligence involving, immigration attorneys, the USCIS and the SEC. It is not a world anyone should attempt to navigate without an experienced expert at their side.

An Exclusive Visas Expert EB-5 Consultant will cut through the confusion for the investor by explaining how the program works generally and specifically for the candidate. Exclusive Visas brings together all the elements of the program, manages timelines, and gives the client the broadest likelihood of success.

From petitioning the USCIS to choosing a credible project to invest in, Exclusive Visas will see to it that the investor has all the information necessary to give them peace-of-mind while making the best of the EB-5 opportunity.

Don’t wait another day. Click here to contact an Exclusive Visas Eb-5 consultant now.



EB-5 Funds South Florida Franchise Restaurant Expansion

April 16, 2013 @ 11:30 am
Posted by Exclusive Visas

When traditional sources of financing to fund U.S. franchise restaurant projects dried up in 2007 many business developers and restaurateurs turned the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program for financing. And according to a recent South Florida Sun-Sentinel report, EB-5 financing has become front and center for many restaurant chains expanding into South Florida.

According to the report, Florida Franchisees for a variety of U.S. national restaurant chains are aggressively seeking funds from international investors interested in participating in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Immigrant Investor (USCIS) EB-5 program.

The EB-5 visa is a path to permanent residency for foreign investors who want to call the U.S. home. To qualify participants must invest at least $500,000 in a USCIS approved business that creates at least 10 U.S. jobs.

Sonic Hamburgers was one of the first chains in South Florida to attract EB-5 investors to the area about two years ago, said Fred Burgess, President of Exclusive Visas of Weston, FL, a consulting firm that specializes in the EB-5 program. A myriad of franchises followed Sonic in South Florida through EB-5 financing, according to Mr. Burgess.

Perhaps most successful so far is the franchise group bringing Voodoo BBQ of New Orleans to South Florida. The group has already secured 10 investors through EB-5 for $5 million (ten positions at $500,000 each) to help finance four units, including its newly opened Pembroke Pines spot. Additionally, Voodoo BBQ & Grill has nearly finished a second offering with 10 more investors — for $5 million — to fund four more locations, Mr. Burgess said.  

EB-5 investors in the South Florida Voodoo BBQ franchise hail from China, Canada and Nigeria, among other countries. “We had visa approvals for the project in as little as five months,” said Mr. Burgess.

In addition to Voodoo BBQ & Grill, Twin Peaks, a sports theme restaurant/bar designed to compete with such chains as Hooters is among a growing list of restaurant chains currently tapping into the South Florida via the EB-5 program, according to the Sun-Sentinel report.  

Advocates see the program as “win-win,” spurring U.S. jobs at a time when U.S. credit remains limited and demand for U.S. residency is high, according to the report.

Franchises are also attractive for investors, since they tend to succeed at a higher rate than stand-alone businesses, according to Mr. Burgess, who is traveling in the United Arab Emirates and India this month to meet with potential EB-5 investors.

Many EB-5 projects including VooDoo BBQ & Grill and Twin Peaks are presented under the Palm Beach Regional Center. The Palm Beach Regional Center, which has an outstanding reputation for presenting quality EB-5 projects, is one of the few Regional Centers in the United States that can boast a 100% success rate on all previous I-526 petitions. The Palm Beach Regional Center operates in nine Florida Counties including Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach.

“Franchise  investment offerings have been very appealing to EB-5 agents, consultants, and immigration attorneys as well as investors because they are a relatively small in volume ($500,000 per investor), a good mix of developer cash and EB-5 funds, and because there is a history of approvals with the Regional Center on restaurant projects. And with some approvals coming in as little as 4 months we expect interest to continue in South Florida franchise restaurants,” said Joe Sloboda Vice President of Exclusive Visas.

Contact Exclusive Visas to Discuss Franchise Restaurant Investment Opportunities