EB-5 Direct Visa
An EB-5 direct investment is an investment made into the actual job-creating and operating business. This investment is made into a new business and the creation of at least 10 new full-time and direct jobs. A certain percentage of EB-5 investors consider this EB5 visa USA investment method. These investments can be of different types such as an IT firm, franchise business, a chain of retail stores, restaurants, and more.
EB-5 Direct Investment Job Creation
People investing in this method are required by law to invest in a commercial enterprise that creates directly minimum of 10 new and directly full-time jobs. The jobs per EB-5 investor must last for at least 2 years from the date investor get legal permanent resident status in the US. If the investors are running their own businesses, the EB-5 applicant and their family members don’t consider EB5- direct investment.
Requirements for EB-5 Direct Investment
- Each investor must create and maintain at least ten new and full-time jobs as a result of his or her investment.
- The EB-5 investors must invest a minimum of $800,000 as a qualifying investment amount only when the commercial enterprise is TEA (Targeted Employment Area) located.
- The minimum qualifying investment amount is $1,050,000 for a commercial enterprise located other than TEA.
- The commercial enterprise to be invested in can be organized in several ways including the following –
- Partnership
- Sole Proprietorship
- Limited Liability Company
- Joint Venture
- The investment amount must have traceable and lawful origin proven by detailed evidence.
- The investor must have a role in the policymaking or management of a company he or she is investing in.
TEA or targeted employment area is the region with a 150% unemployment rate of the national average. Also, it could be a rural region (an area outside an MSA – Metropolitan Statistical Area). A rural area can’t have over 20,000 population. It must be on the edge of a municipality with 20,000+ citizens. In rural EB-5 projects, investors get expedited processing and 20 percent EB-5 visa set-asides from 10,000 EB5 visas yearly allotment.
Some Examples of EB-5 Direct Investment for US Visa
As stated above, an investor must think about starting a business that must create 10 full-time jobs. For example, if you are interested in establishing a new gas station, you must consider if a specific single gas station can directly create and maintain ten full-time jobs.
Mostly, a single gas station may possibly create around 3-5 jobs that are full-time. Your investment will be qualified for an EB-5 USA investor visa if you establish more than one gas station at multiple new locations and this investment creates at least 10 full-time jobs across all those areas. Similarly, if opening a single restaurant can’t create and sustain ten full-time jobs, it would not be qualified for an EB-5 direct investment. For being qualified, an investor requires multiple new locations.
Benefits of EB-5 Direct Investment
Since direct investment is done via a permanent EB-5 investor program, there is no possibility of any expiration dates. Thus, investors can rest assured of long-term stability compared to the regional center program. As equity investments, EB-5 direct investments are more likely to provide higher return rates than low rates provided through regional center investments. Investors considering direct investments need not worry about redeployment. Unlike regional center investments, direct investments don’t have exit-time problems.