EB-5 Glossary of Terms
Abandonment of Residency
Abandonment can occur when you are outside of the United States for more than six months without informing the USCIS of your plans in advance. The law provides that you are free to travel abroad, provided that your trip is “temporary”. Generally, the USCIS views any absence from the United States for longer than six months as not temporary. Thus, it is advisable to obtain a “re-entry permit” before your departure.
Conditional Green Card
A conditional Green Card is a temporary Green Card valid for two years. One year and nine months after it is issued, a three-month window opens up during which an individual must file another application (I-829) with the CIS to verify that all of the funds have been invested and employment created, in a regional center whether directly or indirectly. When the conditional resident status has been lifted, full resident status is granted and a permanent Green Card is issued.
Designated Regional Center
This is an entity, organization or agency that has been approved as such by the United States Government. It Focuses on a specific geographic area within the United States and seeks to promote economic growth through increased export sales, improved regional productivity, creation of new jobs, and increased domestic capital investment.
EB-5 Visa Program
The EB-5 Visa Program is an employment based immigration program that allots 10,000 visas per year for aliens and family members whose qualifying investments result in the creation or preservation of at least ten (10) full-time jobs for U.S. workers. 5,000 immigrant visas are set-aside for aliens who invest in designated regional centers, areas of high unemployment or other qualifying areas.
Escrow or Trust Account
An Escrow Bank Account is a legal account established in a registered bank to hold the initial deposit in the trust until the completion of visa processing. This type of account is commonly used in the sales of real estate, businesses and personal property. The Investment Visa Program has established an Escrow Account for the purpose of safely holding an investor’s funds at a leading bank in the United States. Under the agreements entered into with the servicing affiliate, the investor’s investment money is not authorized to be released from the Escrow Bank Account by the bank until the visa I-526 Petition has been approved. This process was created to protect the investor.
Lawfully Gained Assets
Assets gained in a lawful manner. Investor must prove his investment funds were obtained through lawful business, salary, investments, property sales, inheritance, gift, loan or other lawful means.
Limited Liability Company (LLC)
A limited liability corporation is formed by filing a charter with a state government and consists of managing members and one or more other members. The charter details the rights and powers of the managing and management members, percentages of ownership, and distributions of profits. The managing members manage the business.
Passive Investment
An investment where the investor is not involved in the day-to-day management or policymaking of the investment.
Permanent Residency
Once you obtain a green card, and become a legal permanent resident, you have most of the rights and obligations of U.S. citizens, except that you cannot vote and you are not entitled to some public benefits. You are subject to the same tax filing requirements and entitled to the same tax rates and deductions as U.S. citizens.
Unconditional Green Card
An unconditional Green Card does not need to be reissued.
Related EB-5 Information Pages:
EB-5 USA Immigrant Investor Program
Note that this information is subject to change, please visit the USCIS web site at www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis