EB-5 Project Due Diligence in Covid-19 era

By Mark Davies, Global Chairman, D&A

While the pandemic was not predictable economic shocks such as the mortgage crisis or just a plain economic downturn are.

Without making any comment at all on any specific EB-5 project, it is true that investors need to make sure that proper protections are in place when investing in any project. Many, not all, EB5 projects simply do not have the protections in them that a normal non-EB5 investor would demand.

There absolutely are real estate EB-5 projects in the market that are doing well, such as pre-leased warehouses or office buildings that are pre-leased to “AAA” clients.

There is far more to EB-5 project review than EB-5 compliance.

It is quite common to see EB-5 projects that have no language protecting clients from future subordination of the EB-5 position. In pre-leased commercial projects immigration lawyers often fail to take “due diligence” step 101 and read that lease on behalf of their client.

There are absolutely steps clients facing challenged projects must take now to protect themselves. Workouts 101.

Also, consider the position of a developer who is also a Regional Center in a workout or bankruptcy. Can they effectively represent the interests of EB5 investors?

***

The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program offers a direct route to a US Green Card. The minimum investment requirement is $900,000 and other conditions, such as job creation, apply. The EB-5 Visa is exempted from President Trump’s current “immigration ban”.

Contact me for more information.

Nothing in this blog constitutes legal advice, please contact Davies & Associates for a consultation with an attorney


July Visa Bulletin shows India EB-5 Visa Priority Date as “Current”

The State Department has published the July Visa Bulletin, which offers some insight into the waiting times for the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program. The most notable change in this month’s Visa Bulletin is that EB-5 Visa Priority Date for India has become “Current”.

What this means is that India is no longer in retrogression and EB-5 applicants born in India can progress to the next stage and schedule their visa appointment once they are approved.

At first glance this is exciting news and would appear to spell the end of the waiting list for Indians seeking an EB-5 Green Card. However, as we have cautioned before, this is likely to be artificial.

The probable explanation is that the rate of I-526 adjudications at the US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) has slowed significantly. Only after an I-526 has been approved can an applicant progress to obtaining a visa. So with fewer adjudications there is likely to be less demand at the National Visa Center, causing India to appear as “Current”.

With Covid-19 compounding the slowdown at USCIS, we will be keeping a close eye on the priority dates for you over the next few months.


Philippine National Seeking U.S. Visas: The Options

Verdie Atienza

By Verdie Atienza,Head of E-2 visas & Philippines Practice Group, Davies & Associates LLC,
Verdie Atienza leads the L1/E2 team at Davies & Associates. He is dual qualified to practice law in Philippines and the United States. As an immigrant to the United States, Verdie handled his own adjustment of status application and retains a strong interest in all kinds of immigration issues.

Once bound together, the Philippines and America have a unique and special relationship. After the Philippines was granted independence in 1946, the two countries established close cultural, military and economic ties, and so it is no surprise that many Filipinos want to live and work in America today.

Given the strong historic bonds between the Philippines and the United States, there are a number of options open to Filipinos seeking a working visa to the United States. At Davies & Associates, we specialize in helping businessmen, entrepreneurs and high-net-worth individuals secure investor visas to the United States.

We have been seeing increasing demand for investor visa from across the Philippines, and from among the Filipino-Chinese community in particular. The Filipino-Chinese community has a reputation for business ownership and entrepreneurship that makes them especially eligible for several types of investor visas to the United States.

Having been born and raised in the Philippines and having practiced law there, I am always pleased to hear from Filipinos interested in investor visas for the United States. I speak Tagalog and understand the special cultural and business climate of the Philippines. I work closely with our Filipino clients to determine the best visa for their individual requirements.


E-2 visas

The E-2 visa is the most common visa solution for members of the Philippine business community seeking to set up a business in USA. The Philippines has been an E-2 Treaty country of the United States since 1955. This allows Philippine nationals to be admitted to the United States when investing a substantial amount of capital in a U.S. business.

A Filipino investor qualifies for E2 classification if he or she meets the following criteria:

  • Have invested, or be actively in the process of investing, a substantial amount of capital in a bona fide enterprise in the United States
  • Be seeking to enter the United States solely to develop and direct the investment enterprise. This is established by showing at least 50% ownership of the enterprise or possession of operational control through a managerial position or other corporate device.

An investment is the Filippino investor’s placing of capital, including funds and/or other assets, at risk in the commercial sense with the objective of generating a profit. The capital must be subject to partial or total loss if the investment fails.

A substantial amount of capital is:

  • Substantial in relationship to the total cost of either purchasing an established enterprise or establishing a new one.
  • Sufficient to ensure the treaty investor’s financial commitment to the successful operation of the enterprise.
  • Of a magnitude to support the likelihood that the treaty investor will successfully develop and direct the enterprise. The lower the cost of the enterprise, the higher, proportionately, the investment must be to be considered substantial.

Visit our E2 Investor Visa for Filipinos page for more.


E-1 Visas

The E-1 non-immigrant classification allows Philippine nationals to be admitted to the United States solely to engage in substantial trade between the U.S. and the Philippines on his or her own behalf. Trade is the existing international exchange of items of trade for consideration between the United States and the treaty country. Items of trade include but are not limited to:

  • Goods
  • Services
  • International banking
  • Insurance
  • Transportation
  • Tourism
  • Technology and its transfer
  • Some news-gathering activities.

Visit our E1 Visa for Filipinos page for more.


EB-5 Visas

Filipinos seeking more permanent residency in the United States can seek a green card through the EB-5 visa program. Under the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, entrepreneurs (and their spouses and unmarried children under 21) are eligible to apply for a green card if they make a minimum 500,000 USD investment in a commercial enterprise in the United States and, in doing so, create or preserve 10 permanent full-time jobs.

Most successful applicants to the EB-5 visa program place their investment in the Regional Center Program. EB5 Regional Centers are USCIS-approved funds who invest applicants’ money in appropriate commercial enterprises that meet the job-creation requirement.


L-1A and L-1B visas

The L-1A nonimmigrant classification enables a U.S. employer to transfer an executive or manager from one of its affiliated Philippines offices to one of its offices in the United States. This classification also enables a foreign company which does not yet have an affiliated U.S. office to send an executive or manager to the United States with the purpose of establishing one.

The L-1B nonimmigrant classification enables a U.S. employer to transfer a professional employee with specialized knowledge relating to the organization’s interests from one of its affiliated offices in the Philippines to one of its offices in the United States. This classification also enables a Philippines company which does not yet have an affiliated U.S. office to send a specialized knowledge employee to the United States to help establish one.

Visit our L1 Visa for Filipinos page for more.


H-1B Visas

Every year, the U.S. government make work visas available for specialty occupations. A specialty occupation requires theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge along with at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent. Specialty occupations include but are not limited to, architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts. Considering the substantial equivalency of the college/university degrees obtained in the Philippines to that of US degrees, Filipinos are a step ahead in qualifying for visas for specialty occupations.


Specialist Visas for Medical Professionals

Filipino medical professionals are also at an advantage for obtaining professional licensure and immigration solutions for the US. In fact, Philippine-trained physicians and dentists comprise one of the largest groups in the United States. Today, the healthcare sector is one of the most critical areas of professional practice in the United States of America due to shortage of qualified professionals. Our FMP Practice Team is composed of established immigration lawyers in the Philippines and specialist consultants that work together to ease the burdensome barriers of entry for qualified professionals seeking to enter the United States.

Given a long and close history, there are many different options for Philippine nationals seeking to live and work in the United States. At Davies & Associates, our Tagalog-speaking team works closely with our clients to determine the best visa for their individual requirements.


EB-5 USA Green Card Visa – Key Features & Qualifying Criteria

If you are someone who wants to immigrate to the USA for business-related opportunities, then you must know about the EB-5 Visa that comes with all the essential features that you may require. The key features and qualifying criteria of the visa are as follows:

1. Investment

If you are immigrating to another country for business purpose, often the amount you are allowed to invest can get in the way. However, if you hold the EB-5 U.S.A. Green Card Visa, you can invest how much ever you want for any business. However, the minimum investment should be more than $500,000.

2. Time period

Often, other visa holders need to visit, leave and revisit the country. However, through the EB-5 visa, you needn’t leave the country after a certain term. You can manage your business there as you are holding the EB-5 visa.

3. Employment

People who hold the EB-5 visa can work the way they want. This is the significant advantage of this visa. You can run the business, invest and trade or you can also retire there. Holding this visa poses no legal problems for any position you work for.

4. Visa Denial

If you have the EB-5 green card visa, you need not worry about visa denials in future because it provides the holder with convenience whenever they want to immigrate for business. Also, another feature that comes with the green card is that the holder can and must reside in the country for 180 days per year. So, you can stay in the country without worries.

5. Eligibility

To apply for this visa, you must be financially well off to invest more than $500,000. You should also get the approval form from the “Immigration Petition by Alien Entrepreneur.” In your company at least ten U.S. employees should work within two years of investment. Also, you cannot run the business alone; you must have a business partner.

Hold the EB-5 Green Card Visa and make maximum out of its features that include holding any employment position you want, staying in the country without having to leave and starting your business with a partner. So, if you are looking for a good U.S business immigration attorney, then you must consult a US Immigration Advisor who has the best EB-5 immigration lawyers to guide you through the immigration process.


Tips on How to Get Your Green Card for the USA

Obtaining a green card for the United States is something which most people wish to achieve. The US green card gives you the permission to live in the United States and even work there permanently. It also grants you the permission to be able to apply for citizenship. You are allowed to travel freely to and fro from the US, study there and also can participate in the employment programs which are conducted in the US. You also get US government benefits if you own a green card in the US.

Obtaining a green card is a somewhat complicated procedure. Below listed are some of the tips which can be followed to get a US green card:

1) If you marry a citizen of the United States, then you can get a US green card easily. If your loved one belongs to the US and has American citizenship, then after marrying, you are eligible to obtain a green card. However, just for getting a green card for the US, if you marry or date someone, then it is regarded as a case of immigration fraudulence.

2) If any of your family member who resides in the United States and has American citizenship is willing to sponsor you for obtaining a green card, then you can also be able to acquire US citizenship. US citizens have the option of sponsoring their family or relatives staying in another country to obtain a green card through their sponsorship. However, this type of sponsorship can take up to a few months to even years for obtaining it. You should always carefully find out the priority dates and the approximate wait time before deciding to get a green card for the US through this method.

3) You can also obtain a green card if a US-based company sponsors you. If you have the required and necessary skills and knowledge which a US company needs, then you can get sponsored by that company for obtaining a green card. If you do not live in the United States, then you can contact employers of the US companies to sponsor you in this regard. It can be complicated for you to obtain a green card if you do not have any contacts or sources in the US.

4) If you have enough money and resources and can afford to start your own business in the United States or invest in any US-based company, then you can obtain a green card. However, this method involves large capital investments and money.

5) You can also try your luck by taking part in the Green Card Lottery. If you are lucky enough to be randomly chosen amongst all the other applicants, then the process of obtaining a US green card will be a rather more simple and quick process for you.

If you really wish to permanently live and work in the United States and acquire a green card, then you should keep in mind to apply for a green card in the US in such a way which offers you permanent residence in the United States quickly and easily.