Why would immigrant investors choose the U . S . EB-5 program when they could apply for similar programs in Europe , the Mediterranean or the Caribbean where waits for citizenship are much shorter ? While the U . S . is still very attractive to immigrants and their families for its excellent educational system , economic opportunities and high quality of life , it ’ s getting to the point where it just doesn ’ t make a lot of sense for immigrants to choose America .
Advocates say people in the industry need to get active , contact their representatives in Congress and ask them to increase the cap or take other steps to address the EB-5 visa backlog . The battle over the Targeted Employment Area and other matters consuming the attention of Congress and people in the industry will mean little if the EB-5 backlog is not addressed and applications for the program dry up .
As an industry , Rosenfeld says the focus needs to be one thing — addressing the EB-5 visa backlog .
“ While there may be a six year backlog now , any legislation next year could return that backlog to zero ,” Rosenfeld says .
Our message : Keep the United States competitive with the rest of the world !
It ’ s in America ’ s National Interest to Address the Extreme EB-5 Visa Backlog
By Bob Kraft
Each year , about 1 million Lawful Permanent Residents ( LPR ) are admitted to the U . S .
Capped at approximately 10,000 immigrant investors and derivatives , EB-5 comprises just 1 percent of the total number of LPR admissions and . 003 percent of the total population of the United States .
So while EB-5 immigration numbers are a drop in the bucket , the program has had a profound ripple effect on communities across our great nation . EB-5 has funded more than $ 14 billion in foreign direct investment , creating tens of thousands of American jobs , contributing to GDP , and adding to federal , state and local tax revenue — all at no cost to the taxpayer .
The effects of the backlog will be particularly pronounced in small market cities like Milwaukee , where EB-5 has been a catalyst for citywide development . Small cities and rural areas typically attract limited Foreign Direct Investment and I believe without EB-5 as a vehicle , these areas are less likely to do so in the future .
The mission of the U . S . Commerce Department is to create and promote conditions for economic growth , opportunity , job creation , sustainable development , and an improved standard of living for Americans . This strongly parallels the language Congress used to explain the intent of their EB-5 program .
“ EB-5 has funded more than $ 14 billion in foreign direct investment , creating tens of thousands of American jobs , contributing to GDP , and adding to federal state and local tax revenue — all at no cost to the taxpayer .”
The budget provides over half a billion dollars to the International Trade Administration ( ITA ), to promote economic growth and create high-paying jobs in the U . S . This includes funding for SelectUSA to facilitate job-creating business investment into the United States . It would appear that EB-5 is helping the administration do just that .
So , if the U . S . government has a department with parallel objectives which they fund to promote the growth of these very activities , why limit it ? At present , we are principally capping EB-5 investments at approximately $ 1.5 - $ 2.5 billion dollars and job creation at 30 , 000 to 50,000 per year . Has the world ’ s largest economy exceeded our appetite for job creation ? Do our communities have too much investment ?
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