USCIS Seeks Comments on Proposed EB-5 Immigrant Investor Rule

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) seeks public comments on a proposed rule published on September 28, 2011, that would enable the agency to process certain applications approved between 1995 and 1998 by immigrant investors under the fifth preference employment-based (EB-5) immigrant visa classification.

The proposed rule would implement provisions of the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act that apply to a group of immigrant investors who had a Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur, approved between January 1, 1995, and August 31, 1998. Specifically, the rule would enable USCIS to process cases for approximately 580 principal immigrant investors and their dependents whose I-526 petitions were approved during that period and who, before November 2, 2002, sought to:

• Register for permanent residence or adjust their status (using Form I-485); or
• Remove conditions on permanent residence obtained as an entrepreneur (using Form I-829).

The processes outlined in the proposed rule would provide an additional two-year period for most of these immigrant investors to meet the EB-5 investment and job-creation requirements. This rule would not impact any other applications or petitions filed under the EB-5 program.

Comments will be accepted until November 28, 2011, and should be submitted via one of the methods listed in the proposed rule, which is available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-09-28/pdf/2011-24619.pdf. USCIS corrected the docket number for the proposed rule on October 4, 2011; see http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-10-04/pdf/2011-25463.pdf.