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Green Cards Obtained by EB-5 Hit All-Time High in 2024 · IMI Podcasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, also known as USCIS, recently published statistics for processed petitions, including EB5 petitions for fiscal quarter three, covering April 1 to June 30, 2024.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Main takeaways are that new applicants starting the EB5 process by filing for conditional residency, I-526 and I-526E, dropped from 1,879 in quarter two to two hundred and sixty-four in quarter three.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_00: Conversely, investors nearing the end of their EB5 journey by applying to remove conditions from their green cards, I-829, increased from two hundred and thirty seven in quarter two to one thousand eight hundred and twelve in quarter three.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: By the end of Q3 2024, this year already boasts the highest number of investors completing the EB5 process in the program's history.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Investors who obtained approval for their I-829 petitions make up the majority of this group.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: USCIS continues to increase its processing volumes, which should significantly reduce processing times for new EB5 applicants.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: We have gathered data for EB5 related petitions starting from quarter 3, 2022, when the EB5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, or RIA of 2022, restarted the EB5 program.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: The substantial decrease in new applications is attributable to increased government fees for all petitions, including EB5.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Fees increased significantly starting from April 1, 2024.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: For I-526E petitions, fees rose from US$3,675 US dollars to$11,160.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: While this increase would hardly affect overall interest in the EB5 program, it provided a strong incentive for people already preparing documents to file before the fee increase deadline.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Based on known figures, the denial rate for combined petitions remains at 21%.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Of the 264 new applicants, 35 investors chose to invest in their own businesses, while most opted for regional center projects.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: The number of pending petitions is inconsistent, and information on the post-RIA applications is missing.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: We anticipate clarification in USCIS's Quarter 4 report.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: The quarter three 2024 data shows that 1,812 investors filed to remove conditions from their green cards, a marked increase from previous quarters.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: Additionally, 1,788 investors completed their EB5 journey by receiving approval for their permanent green cards.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: This makes 2024 the year with the highest number of I-829 approvals in the EB5 program's history.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: The denial rate remains low at 5%.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: The number of investor petitions the USCIS processed continues to increase.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: In quarter three, they reviewed the highest number of investor petitions since the reform, 3,914 investors received a decision on their applications from USCIS.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: This indicates USCIS's serious effort to clear the application backlog, suggesting that once resolved, the processing time for new investors could be significantly shorter than now.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_00: As the EB5 program's numbers pick up, 50 new regional centers applied for registration and 56 new EB5 projects are prepared to accept foreign investor funds.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: This is only slightly lower than in quarter two, 2023, when investors filed 76 and 88 applications respectively.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: This trend is noteworthy, especially considering that government fees for these applications increased on April 1 from$17,795 to$47,695 for new regional center registrations.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: Since the RIA of 2022, all foreign companies promoting EB5 projects must register with USCIS using Form 1956K.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: In Q3 2024, promoters and their employees filed 108 new applications, slightly fewer than the 124 forms filed in Quarter 2.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: This brings the total number of applications filed by promoters since the reform in 2022 to 1,154.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: USCIS has not yet issued any approvals or denials for these forms.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: This episode first appeared as an article by Varvara Latintseva on IMIDaily.com.
• 4:53
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• 5:00
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