EB-5 Changes in the Works

Fresh off changes in 2019, the EB-5 program, which allows foreign investors to get green cards for themselves and their families in exchange for targeted investment, is again under scrutiny. After a number of high-profile fraud cases, both locally and nationally, two competing bills mandating additional oversight and transparency are making their way through the Senate.

The minimum EB-5 investment threshold varies depending on whether or not an area qualifies as a Targeted Employment Area (TEA). In addition to lowering the investment threshold, the Graham-Cornyn bill would make all Opportunity Zones qualify as TEAs, opening up a potential new source of capital for Opportunity Zone development.

The Grassley-Leahy bill has more of an emphasis on preventing fraud and would create a fund administrator to over see the program. Neither bill addresses existing issues with the number of visas, capped at 10,000 annually, or wait times for investors from certain countries.

Check out all the details at Law360.com.