An immigrant investor route requiring qualifying capital investment and at least 10 permanent full-time U.S. jobs. Mainland-born applicants must distinguish reserved set-asides from the heavily backlogged unreserved category.
Route overview
Investment, job creation, and conditional Green Card
Typical timeline / duration: Conditional residence for 2 years, then I-829 removes conditions
Important notes
Investment amount: $800,000 in a targeted employment area or qualifying infrastructure project, otherwise $1,050,000; verify the amount and project classification before filing.
Reserved categories include rural, high-unemployment, and infrastructure projects. Mainland-born applicants should compare the relevant set-aside category with the current Visa Bulletin before filing.
China-born queue: the unreserved category can have a long final-action-date backlog, so do not treat the ordinary category as immediately available.
File Form I-526E with evidence of the investment, the commercial enterprise, the job-creation plan, and the lawful source and path of funds.
After conditional residence, file Form I-829 during the required filing window and prove that the investment was sustained and the jobs were created or will be created within the permitted period.
A spouse and unmarried children under 21 can generally be included as derivative applicants; the filing must include each family member and satisfy the age and relationship rules at the relevant filing stage.
The route can lead to a Green Card, but it is not a passive purchase: project risk, source-of-funds tracing, job creation, visa availability, and immigration filings all matter.
EB-5 is an immigrant pathway, not a temporary work visa.
Investment projects carry financial and immigration risk; USCIS approval does not guarantee a return or immediate visa issuance.
Preparation checklist
Review the USCIS EB-5, I-526E, and I-829 guidance and the current Visa Bulletin.
Prepare the project documents, subscription or investment records, and evidence of the qualifying project category.
Build a complete lawful-source-and-path-of-funds file covering tax, banking, sale, gift, loan, and transfer records as applicable.
Confirm the 10-job plan, regional-center or direct-investment structure, and the evidence needed for I-829.
Check derivative family eligibility and the visa-availability timing before committing funds.