Has anyone had their money back from the EB5 investment visa?

The $500,000 question.

Once you have had the conditions removed from your green cards (twenty one to twenty four months after your green cards are initially activated) through an I-829 petition you generally have to wait to cash in your investment – as a general rule of thumb it is unlikely to be less than five years from the date you initially invested funds.

Under the requirements of the EB-5 pilot program, Regional Centers are not allowed to guarantee the return of your investment – it has to be “at risk”.

The various regional center programs often refer to the return of the $500000 investment as the exit strategy. Some regional centers have a specific fixed term/date for the return of your investment others have more complex or sometimes ambiguous exit strategies, some are lost in a mass of legal jargon.

Importantly, some programs focus on countries where the investors primary concern is the visa, not the return of the $500000 - it is very important you are aware of the dangers of this strategy.

One regional center's first two projects, which were loans made from a limited partnership of EB5 investors, have reached maturity, been repaid in full to the limited partnership and all limited partners who elected not to make an alternative investment have received a full return of their $500,000 principal investment. For further details along with the latest information on which regional centers have paid in full and which have paid less than the $500,000 capital investment please contact the partners at Which EB5

The vast majority of regional centers have not been operating long enough to be in position to return investments.