EB-5 extended again, now until September 2019
February 23, 2019The US Congress through the Senate and the House of Representatives approved on February 14 the Resolution 31 authorizing, among other measures, the extension of the EB-5 Program until September 30th, 2019.
Once again the program was extended without any change, thus maintaining the values and criteria that have been applied before giving foreign investors the opportunity to obtain a green card if they invest at least $500,000 in a development project and create at least ten jobs.
Successive extensions within the EB-5 program
The US Congress has been editing successive and constant extensions of the term of this program aimed at exactly not harming or affecting those who started the EB-5 visa process.
There is enormous pressure from some congressmen who criticize the current conditions of the program.
On the other hand, there are a substantial number of economic groups that have benefited from the resources provided by foreign investors in projects linked to the program to obtain the residency.
The expectation is that soon the conditions of the program will change due to the growth of visa applications from foreign investors.
According to data from the USCIS-United States Citizenship and Immigration Service, in 2016 150 Brazilians were granted the EB-5 visa to obtain the much-desired Green Card.
In 2017, that number jumped to 282.
In 2018 the number was no less than 388 Brazilians who migrated to the United States through the EB-5 Program.
The idea of the program is for foreign investors to invest in areas that are considered to be underprivileged, that is, areas with high levels of unemployment or that are considered rural areas.