Mona Shah & Associates Attorney Yi Song quoted by the Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal published an article in response to the EB-5 visa unavailability to investors from mainland China. The visa unavailability impacted Chinese investors for the first time since the creation of the EB-5 Program almost 25 years ago.
The unavailability announcement is significant because one of the selling points of the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program is the “red carpet” treatment as there is no waiting line for wealthy EB-5 immigrant entrepreneurs, unlike the family visa categories and other employment based categories (e.g., exceptional ability), where the wait time is significantly longer. The EB-5 visas have been in extremely high demands. It is increased by 700% since 2007.
According to The Wall Street Journal, “Due to a surge in Chinese participation, the U.S. for the first time is on course this fiscal year to run out of immigrant-investor visas that offer a fast track to permanent residency”. As of June 2014, there are 10,375 pending EB-5 petitions. The annual visa quota is 10,000, which means the quota can only accommodate 3,500 – 4,000 petitions given that each petitioner has one spouse and 1 or 2 children.
Majority of the EB-5 investors from China are interested in the EB-5 program because the U.S. is one of the most desirable overseas destinations for its higher education opportunities and innovation based economic growth model. Overseas permanent residence has become a status symbol for the wealthy in China.
Please click here to read the full article on the Wall Street Journal. The Chinese translation of the article can be found here.