DOS Announces Major Developments in Availability of China EB-5 Visa Numbers

At an immigration law conference sponsored by the American Immigration Lawyers Association on August 23, 2014, Charles Oppenheim of the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced that effective immediately, the employment-based fifth preference category (EB-5) is “unavailable” for investors born in China. Visa numbers will become available again when the new federal fiscal year starts on October 1, 2014.

The practical implications of this announcement are quite minimal for Chinese investors who are on track to complete the immigrant visa process within the next few months. EB-5 applicants from China who have already been scheduled for their initial immigrant visa interviews in August and September 2014 will still attend and may be issued visas. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will still accept I-485 applications to adjust status for EB-5 applicants in the United States.

Long-term implications for EB-5 investors from China are more consequential. Mr. Oppenheim advised that in the spring of 2015, DOS will probably establish a cut-off date for EB-5 China, meaning that the category will “retrogress.” Mr. Oppenheim estimated that the initial backlog will be about two years. Based on the number of I-526 EB-5 petitions currently pending at USCIS (approximately 10,300), the current I-526 approval rate of 77%, and the speed and rate of adjudication (13 to 16 months), predictions are that the EB-5 cut-off date for China may quickly increase to three years, given the substantial number of cases already in process.

The DOS announcement does not affect EB-5 investors from other countries.

These developments are expected to significantly affect the EB-5 program as a whole, given that investors from China make up more than 80% of all EB-5 cases. Investors from China will have to wait longer to obtain their visas. The delays will also affect U.S. developers who rely on EB-5 money in their projects. If you are an EB-5 investor or project developer, contact your Alliance of Business Immigration Lawyers attorney for more detailed advice.