the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program: a green card for a US$800,000 investment creating 10 jobs
The EB-5 visa turns a US$800,000 investment in a US business that creates 10 jobs into a green card for you, your spouse and your children under 21. In 2026 the rural set-aside is the key development: USCIS is deciding those petitions in about 9.6 months, the category is current for every nationality, and people already in the US can file for work and travel authorisation the same day. The capital must be genuinely at risk, and the green card taxes you worldwide. This guide covers the requirements, investment options, process and risks.
Figures verified 27 September 2026 · Licensed CICC consultant, Toronto
The regional centre and direct investment routes share one statute but differ substantially in practice. Most of our clients choose a regional-centre project in a rural targeted employment area.
US$800,000
20% of visas reserved. Jobs counted with an economic model, so 10 jobs is rarely the constraint.
US$800,000
10% reserved; current for all countries but no priority processing, and decisions have ranged 17–52 months.
US$800,000
2% reserved; few projects exist.
US$1,050,000
Backlogged by years for China and India; 30–61 months to decide. We rarely recommend it.
US$800,000 (TEA) or US$1,050,000
Filed on Form I-526, not I-526E; does not depend on regional-centre reauthorisation.
Amounts index for inflation from 1 January 2027. Filing on or before 30 September 2026 also locks regional-centre grandfathering. Figures verified 27 September 2026.
Jane Katkova has advised on citizenship and residence by investment since 1998. We confirm eligibility, the complete fee schedule and the realistic processing time before you pay anything, and we advise against a programme when it does not fit your circumstances.
Current times per stage are on our processing-times page.
We confirm your category (rural for most), review the tax consequences with a cross-border accountant, and shortlist regional-centre projects by job cushion, capital stack, developer track record and repayment terms.
Every dollar is traced: salary and tax returns, property sales, business distributions, gifts and loans, each documented to its origin. This is the decisive element of the petition.
The US$800,000 goes into escrow or the new commercial enterprise, plus the regional centre's administration fee. The US attorney files I-526E with the US$11,160 fee and the US$1,000 integrity-fund fee. If you are in the US in valid status, I-485, I-765 and I-131 are filed the same day.
The combined employment authorisation and advance parole card arrives while the petition is pending. You can change employer or stop working.
Approval means USCIS accepts the investment, the job plan and your funds. A request for evidence is common and is not a denial.
Through I-485 approval in the US or an immigrant visa interview at the consulate (Montreal for most Canadians). The card is valid for two years.
We show the capital was sustained and the 10 jobs were created. Your status continues while I-829 is pending. Permanent residence follows, and citizenship is possible five years from the date the conditional card was issued.
| Question | EB-5 | E-2 (Canadians, treaty nationals) | European golden visa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status at the end | Permanent green card, citizenship possible | Renewable work visa, never permanent alone | Residence permit; EU passport after 7–10 years of real residence |
| Capital | US$800,000 at risk, structured for repayment | No minimum; must be substantial and at risk | €250,000–€800,000, mostly recoverable |
| Time to a decision | About 9.6 months rural | Weeks to months | 6–24 months |
| Employer needed | No | No, but you must run the business | No |
| Must you live there | Yes, it is permanent residence | Yes, to run the business | No, or 7 days a year (Portugal) |
| Tax consequence | US tax resident on worldwide income | Only if you meet the substantial-presence test | Only if you spend 183+ days |
There are four: invest the required capital in a new commercial enterprise; keep it at risk for at least two years from when it reaches the job-creating business; show that it creates 10 full-time jobs for US workers; and prove the money came from lawful sources. You also need to be admissible to the United States, which means a clean criminal record and no immigration violations that bar adjustment. There is no minimum age, no English test and no business experience requirement.
What we do: strategy, project due diligence, the source-of-funds file and the Canadian tax coordination, with the petition filed by a licensed US immigration attorney. What you do: gather records early, keep the capital untouched, and plan the move. If you are deciding this year, the two key dates are 30 September 2026 for regional-centre grandfathering and 1 January 2027 for the inflation increase to the minimums.
For a Canadian, EB-5 is the one US immigration route that does not depend on an employer, a treaty business or a profession list. TN and E-2 provide temporary status; only EB-5 leads to a green card. Canada has no EB-5 backlog, so with a rural project you can expect a decision in months, not years, and if you are already in the US in TN, E-2, L-1 or H-1B status we file I-485 concurrently.
Plan the tax consequences before investing. A green card makes you a US tax resident on worldwide income from the day it is issued, with FBAR and FATCA reporting on your Canadian accounts. Leaving Canada triggers departure tax on deemed dispositions of most assets, and the Canada–US treaty governs the rest. We start every Canadian file with a cross-border accountant involved from the outset. US citizens cannot use EB-5 for themselves; they ask us about it for parents, adult children or a fiancé abroad, and it is often faster than family sponsorship.
If you are in the US on H-1B, L-1, F-1 or OPT, and especially if you were born in India or China, EB-5 is a route to a green card that does not run through your employer or the employment-based backlog. Unreserved EB-5 is backlogged by years for both countries; the rural, high-unemployment and infrastructure set-asides are current for everyone. You invest, file I-526E and I-485 together, and receive an employment authorisation document and advance parole within months. A lay-off no longer means leaving; a change of employer no longer means a new petition.
If you are in Canada on a work permit or PR, you file from Canada and process the immigrant visa at the consulate in Montreal. Either way the petition turns on source of funds: salary history, property sales, gifts and loans, each documented back to origin. Gifts from parents abroad are common and acceptable if the donor's source is shown.
In one consultation we assess whether rural EB-5, E-2 or a European permit fits, what the total cost is, and what the tax change means for you.
Video forthcoming.
An immigrant visa created in 1990 and rewritten by the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022. You invest US$800,000 in a targeted employment area project (US$1,050,000 elsewhere) that creates 10 full-time US jobs, and you, your spouse and your children under 21 receive conditional green cards, made permanent after two years.
Lawful capital of at least US$800,000 (TEA) or US$1,050,000, invested and kept at risk for at least two years; 10 full-time jobs created for US workers; and admissibility to the United States. No language, age, education or business-experience test applies.
Rural I-526E petitions average about 9.6 months, with 77% decided within a year. The overall I-526E average is about 35 months; high-unemployment petitions run 17–52 months and unreserved 30–61. Add consular processing or I-485, two years of conditional residence, and about 20 months for I-829.
Yes. If you are in the US in valid status you file I-485 concurrently with I-526E and receive a work permit and advance parole while USCIS decides. Choose a rural or high-unemployment project so your visa category is current, which matters most for Indian and Chinese nationals.
Not by guarantee: the law requires the capital to be at risk. Regional-centre projects are structured as loans intended to be repaid, usually within five to seven years, but repayment depends on the project. Regional-centre administration fees and USCIS fees are not refundable.
Direct EB-5 is permanent law and is not affected. Regional-centre authorisation runs to 30 September 2027. Petitions filed on or before 30 September 2026 are grandfathered and continue to be processed even if Congress allows a lapse; petitions filed after that date depend on reauthorisation, which has historically been granted, though not always before the deadline.
Yes. Time as a conditional resident counts, so you can apply to naturalise five years after the conditional card was issued, provided you have lived in the US for the required period, have been physically present for at least half of it, and pass the English and civics tests. Canada permits dual citizenship, so a Canadian keeps both.
Compare them side by side: investor residence options and EU residence by investment options. Looking for a passport rather than a permit? See Dominica second passport or Turkish citizenship through property.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Programme rules change; we confirm every figure before you commit.
A confidential consultation with a licensed CICC consultant. We assess eligibility and total cost before you commit to any programme.