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August 12th, 2011 |
 If you are considering the EB-5 visa, to gain permanent residence status for you and your family in The USA it is absolutely vital that you obtain unbiased and independent advice on the various Regional Center programs.
It is also absolutely vital that you thoroughly look into the background of the Consultants and Attorneys you may use to provide all the necessary background information you need to make the right decision.
If you chose an inappropriate Regional Center program all may seem all right at first, i.e. you obtain your I-526 approval (Initial Green Card). However, you could well face problems at the I-829 stage (removal of conditions) and/or difficulties obtaining the return of your $500,000 investment. Ultimately get it wrong and your whole family could face deportation.
We are very concerned that some of the Attorneys and Consultants providing advice are either not equipped or may be unsuitable. We have come across a number of issues which are of concern:-
- Consultants / Attorneys recommending programs which they are actually advising and taking fees from (for their advice). Questions as to a conflict of interest arise in such cases i.e. how can an organization be completely independent if they have a paid professional advisory relationship with one or more Regional Centers?
- Consultants / Attorneys / Agents who have not even visited a Regional Center they are providing information on.
- Consultants and Attorneys who have been the subject of complaints from previous clients and/or been banned from operating by FINRA, a Stock Exchange or other regulatory body and are still advising clients on Regional center options.
- Misinformation being given on web sites and in sales material etc.
The EB-5 visa requires a $500,000 investment in a United States Citizenship and Immigration center (USCIS) Regional Center Programs. The track record of these programs varies considerably and investment terms can be as little as four years. It is vital you obtain independent information from experienced advisors prior to making a decision on Regional Center programs.
If you would like more information on these visa options and a free consultation contact Which EB-5 for an in-depth personal consultation.
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Tags: attorneys, consultants, eb-5, I-526, I-829, independent, regional center, unbiased, USA, uscis, visa, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
June 16th, 2011 |
 Over the past few months the time taken by USCIS to process the EB-5 visa at the I-526 stage has been getting longer. We have had reports from both applicants and attorneys that it has not been unusual for it to take up to nine months from the initial filing to the approval.
There have been a number of reasons put forward for these longer times, including the significant increase in applications by prospective Regional Centers as well as applications for I-526s and I-829s, which have flooded the system.
USCIS had recruited additional staff to cope with the increased number of applications however, training requirements for these staff inevitably led to further delays for a period of time.
Two recent developments may indicate processing times may be starting to return to previous more rapid turnarounds.
- Recent proposals have referred to both premium processing as well as speedier processing times for several categories of EB-5 applications. If these measures are eventually enacted processing times should come down significantly.
- Within the past two weeks certain Regional Centers have reported a significant number of I-526 approvals being granted for their backlog of applications. This is also an encouraging signal that the backlog of applications may be clearing.
One important observation that has been made to us by a number of Attorneys is the number of Requests for Further Evidence (RFE’s) that has been issued by USCIS over the past few months on I-526 applications. Although the number of points raised in these RFEs has seemed to depend on particular programs, one issue that seems to repeatedly come up relates to whether a program is in a properly defined targeted Employment Area (TEA) or not.
It is apparent that some Regional Centers have tried to challenge the accepted Governmental interpretations of TEAs. These challenges should be of concern to potential EB-5 immigrants as they may well become a problem both at the I-526 stage and most importantly at the I-829 stage.
If you are considering an EB-5 as your route to permanent residency in the USA contact WhichEB5 for further information and a free consultation.
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Tags: attorneys, eb-5, I-526, I-829, immigrants, premium processing, regional center, RFE, TEA, uscis, visa, waiting times, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
April 21st, 2011 |
 Although it would seem there is plenty of information available on the EB-5 visa there are two problems we constantly hear about from families who come to us after spending too much time trying to obtain information on this visa.
Many complain that regional centers are really selling machines which focus on selling their investment products but fail to understand the requirements of the family. For many families relocating to the USA is a very big move and they need to feel confident that their requirements are put first rather than just being viewed as another sale.
Others complain that when they speak to attorneys they are given masses of legal information but they get the impression the attorneys may not have visited any regional center programs and cannot therefore adequately advise them. These families understand the importance of taking adequate legal advice but also want detailed information on the regional center programs themselves.
Both these problems can be resolved with the right information and an understanding of the needs of different families making the move to the USA. For more information direct from first generation immigrants contact Which EB5
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Tags: attorneys, complain, eb-5, families, immigrants, legal information, regional center, sales, USA, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
March 24th, 2011 |
Fake identity used to obtain information from Which EB5
We have probably written more than most on the EB-5 visa from a consumer viewpoint. With our book Green Card via the Red Carpet, daily blogs, articles and web sites we try to provide as much information as possible on all aspects of the EB-5 visa.
We have noticed that over the past few months some of our articles and blogs have been copied by Regional Centers, Attorneys and Consultants which could be seen as somewhat flattering; however it does raise some concerns for us.
A lot of time is spent researching programs before writing about them and those copying may not carry out the same amount of detailed background research. This is extremely worrying if they are presenting themselves as knowledgeable experts to their clients when in reality they have not carried out the research.
We have also identified instances where our articles have been copied but with the conclusion radically altered. We have even had examples of Consultants seeking to obtain information from us by using false names, possibly so they can pass themselves off to clients as being more expert than they really are.
This has reached a new level recently and may now have crossed the line from ‘Competitive intelligence’ to ‘Economic espionage’.
We have proof that on March 18th at 2.47 PM a fake identity was used to register as a potential client at our web site. The fake client, who stated they were Russian, said:
“I was doing my research on EB-5 program and looked at some Regional Centers online. There are several I am interested in. Is there any way you can assist me in choosing the best for me Regional Center?”
Wikipedia defines Economic espionage as: Economic or industrial espionage takes place in two main forms. In short, the purpose of espionage is to gather knowledge about (an) organization(s). It may include the acquisition of intellectual property, such as information on industrial manufacture, ideas, techniques and processes, recipes and formulas.
It would appear from our records that this latest attempt would indeed be classified as “to gather knowledge about (an) organization(s)” “include the acquisition of intellectual property” “ideas, techniques and processes” thus defining this action as Economic espionage.
We, at Which EB5, will continue to provide information, articles, blogs and such and leave it to those of you that value our service to decide who you would rather work with.
To those that might seek to take advantage of us in unscrupulous ways BEWARE we are watching.
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Tags: attorneys, blogs, consultants, eb-5, fake, Green Card via the Red Carpet, regional center, russian, visa, Which EB-5, wikipedia
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
February 17th, 2011 |
In an attempt to find out which is the most appropriate regional center program, some families attempt to carry out a due diligence search themselves to obtain the statistics they feel are necessary to answer their questions.
The problem with statistics is they can present data in a dangerously misleading way. As an example let’s look at an often asked question –
Which are the EB-5 regional centers with the highest number of approvals?
OK, the statistics which presently come from information provided by the regional centers may give you the approval figures, but they will not give you all the conclusions to draw from this question.
For example the statistics do not tell you -
- If the approvals were for a regional center that now operates a different type of program. Some centers regularly offer different programs of variable quality.
- They will not tell you if the United States Citizenship and Immigration service (USCIS) has changed its perspective on the program for that center.
- The statistics will not tell you the likelihood or otherwise of applicants getting their capital investment back from a center. Many EB-5 visa applicants need to have both their visa approved and also to see the return of their $500,000 in a reasonable period of time.
- Statistics will not tell you the very important implications if most of the applicants are from a particular country, particularly China. It is very important you are made aware of the potential dangers of this.
- Why a center with one of the highest number of approval figures also has had a number of I-829 refusals, it is critical you are made aware of the extremely important implications of this.
Choosing an EB-5 regional center program requires experienced and impartial advice, you cannot simply rely on the statistics given by the regional centers or some of the consultants and attorneys who in reality are actually working with a particular regional center.
For more information contact Which EB5
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Tags: attorneys, china, consultants, due diligence, eb-5, questions, regional center, statistics, visa, Which EB-5
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
July 12th, 2010 |
 A British couple, who had spent many happy holidays with their children in Orlando Florida over the past twenty years, had been looking at ways they might be able to retire permanently in the U.S. but were concerned that their only options apparently related to the E2 and L1 visas (which do not allow or guarantee permanent residence). They were also concerned that the attorneys they spoke with, focused only on the legal aspects but were not really listening to their personal requirements, including their wide ranging concerns on their retirement in America. I-526 approval took several months and the couple were then interviewed at the U.S. Consulate in London and granted immigrant visas. The couple have subsequently had their I-829 removal of conditions granted and have settled very happily in the Florida way of life playing a lot of tennis and golf and making friends has as they say “made them more active and busier than they were in the UK “.
Read more EB-5 Success Stories here
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Tags: attorneys, british, E2, eb-5, I-526, I-829, L1, permanent residence, removal of conditions, retire, visa
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
February 23rd, 2010 |
 There have been quite a number of families going through the final stages of the EB-5 visa process during the past few weeks.
We have been in regular contact with the families who we have been guiding through the challenges of their relocation to various parts of the US over the past months and this final stage, the consulate interview, can be something of a stomach churning time even for those with nerves of steel and despite the fact that the success rate to date is extremely good.
The EB-5 pilot program investor visa is a somewhat different visa process to many other types of application as the first stage (I-526) will have already been approved by the California service center, prior to the consulate interview.
However, there are still key points that the Attorneys we work with take clients through prior to their interview. An enormous advantage of specializing in EB5 visa relocation’s is that we have experience of taking many families successfully through the journey to obtain the visa; their feedback on the process can be invaluable if you are relocating to the States.
Andrew Bartlett and Stephen Parnell are authors of the recently released book on the EB-5 – Green Card via the Red Carpet
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Tags: attorneys, consular interviews, eb-5, eb5, Green Card via the Red Carpet, I-526, investor visa, relocating to the states
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
May 4th, 2009 |
When investing at least $500,000 in the EB5 visa, it is absolutely critical that you receive the latest information.
We remain concerned that a number of investors are consulting us after they have already invested in a particular regional center and subsequently have discovered issues which are a matter of concern.
We recently had a number of requests for advice following articles in national newspapers flagging up the ongoing investigations by the FBI and Immigration authorities into a company that it is reported has potentially defrauded millions of dollars from a number of its clients. It has also been reported that a number of the families requesting information had emigrated to the USA using this company and were concerned that their visas had been possibly obtained using incorrect information – the results of this could be very serious particularly for E2 and L1 visa holders coming up for renewal.
We were particularly concerned that some of the blog sites reporting this case of fraud over the past week, including a couple from Attorneys – appear to have obtained the information from newspaper articles as their information carried items quoted in newspapers that was factually incorrect. We reported this information back in October 2008 so it is of concern that Attorneys and Consultants who families approach for advice were not apparently aware and alerting clients several months ago.
It is absolutely critical that you are kept informed of the latest information when considering your EB-5 visa options, if you would like to be updated on the latest information or would like details of our free consultation and briefing sessions please contact us at www.WhichEB5.com/contact_us.php
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Tags: attorneys, blog sites, E2, eb-5, eb5, FBI, investing $500000, L1, regional center, USA, visa options, visas
Posted in Immigration | No Comments » |
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