Details about the Golden Visa - US EB5 Visa
As confusion looms over the future
of the H1-B visa programme, an investment-facilitating firm is targeting rich
Indians with the EB5 visa, popularly known as the "Golden Visa", that
promises a faster route to US citizenship.
The US Immigration Fund (USIF),
which launched its Indian operations this year, is confident that affluent
Indians who invest half a million dollars or more in a Targeted Employment Area
(TEA) – creating 10 or more jobs – under the EB5 visa programme, will get US
citizenship in a shorter time compared to the H1-B visa programme.
US President Donald Trump has called
for stricter norms for issuance of H1-B visas, largely availed of by Indian IT
firms. A private member's bill was also introduced earlier this year in the US
Congress by Democrat Zoe Lofgren which seeks to increase the minimum salary of
an H1-B visa holder to a whopping $130,000 from the current minimum of $60,000.
Andrew Graves, USIF’s Director of
Business Development in IndiaWith
the H1-B environment becoming tougher and tougher, demand for EB5 has gone up.
Indians are becoming more aware of the EB5 visa programme.
But First, What Is the EB5 Visa Programme?
Introduced by the US Congress in
1990, the EB5 visa programme allows an individual to invest $500,000 in either
of two TEAs – a high unemployment area in a US metropolis or a rural area
outside of a metro – or $1 million in a non-TEA area that can create 10 or more
jobs.
Earlier this month, the US Congress
extended the programme, which has seen much controversy over the merits of its
applicants, till 30 September this year.
Graves explained that once an
application is filed for an EB5 visa programme, the applicant has to fill in a
I526 form under a US attorney after which he or she gets a temporary US Green
Card for 16 months.
Once the conditions are met, around
two years later, the applicant has to fill in the I829 form which leads to lawful
permanent residency in the US.
Andrew GravesSo, the EB5 offers a certain way for US citizenship within
roughly five years.
Advantage EB5
The USIF claims to have a proven
track record of 100 percent approval rating from the US Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) on all adjudicated projects.
It has 24 projects in the real
estate sector to its credit with $3.2 billion in EB5 capital that includes
6,400 investors.
China is the largest beneficiary of
the EB5 visa programme, accounting for 75.6 percent or over 7,500 visas. India
is sixth on the list with 149 visas after Vietnam (334), South Korea (260),
Taiwan (205) and Brazil (130).
But Graves feels that Indians can
make it to the second spot after China.
We are 100 percent sure that India
will occupy a strong second place after China.
Given the uncertainty over the H1-B
visa programme, more and more Indians graduating from US universities are
opting for the EB5 visa for US citizenship.
The advantage: If an H1-B visa
holder is fired from his or her job, he or she will have to leave the US along
with family whereas once permanent residency is attained, he or she is no
longer dependent on others for staying in the US as long as the person is
law-abiding and renews the Green Card on time.
But how can a fresh Indian graduate
in the US afford to invest a minimum of $500,000 to apply for an EB5 visa?
"It usually comes as a gift
from the family (to ensure the son or daughter's future)," Graves said,
indicating that only the more affluent Indians can afford the "Golden
Visa".
Via Yahoo
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