eb5exclusive

Business executives and immigration experts alike have noted the paramount increases in the demand for EB-5 visas among foreign investors over the past several years, but are still anticipating the frequency of investments to accelerate in the future.

Though the EB-5 visa program was established two decades ago, applications for the immigration and business opportunity are only recently picking up. According to the State Department, the number of immigrants, including the family members of investors, who obtained EB-5 visas jumped from 1,443 in fiscal year 2008 to 4,218 in fiscal year 2009.

Many attribute the growing demand to reforms in the application procedures in the past year and the recent financial crisis, the Washington Post reports.

Demetrios Papademetriou, president of the Washington DC think tank the Migration Policy Institute, told the news source, “What happens with programs like this is that sometimes, all of a sudden they get discovered, and then intermediaries begin to really promote them both here and internationally.”

Confirming Papademetriou’s statements, the Post reported that in several months, the number of private and public enterprises that were certified as EB-5 visa regional centers increased from 23 to 74.

Up to 10,000 EB-5 visas are available each year though the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.