Will the EB-5 Investment Amount Increase in 2027? What the CPI Formula Tells Us

Almost certainly, yes.

On January 1, 2027, the EB-5 minimum investment amounts are scheduled to adjust automatically for inflation. This is not a proposal, and it does not need a vote in Congress or a notice-and-comment rulemaking. The adjustment is written into the statute. As of November 7, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security had not published the new amounts, so any figure you see is an estimate.

This article walks through the formula, the rounding rule, and what different inflation readings would produce. The current minimums are $800,000 for a targeted employment area (TEA) or infrastructure project and $1,050,000 for other projects.

Source: INA Section 203(b)(5)(C)(iii), as amended by the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (RIA); Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI data. Blue trust tier.

Important: This article is educational. Consult a qualified immigration attorney before making filing decisions.

The statutory formula#

INA 203(b)(5)(C)(iii), added by the RIA, says that beginning on January 1, 2027, and every 5 years after that, the standard investment amount adjusts for petitions filed on or after the effective date of each adjustment. The adjustment is based on the cumulative change in the unadjusted Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) between January 1, 2022, and the date of adjustment. The amount is rounded down to the nearest $50,000. The TEA amount is then set at 75 percent of the adjusted standard amount. DHS publishes the new amounts as a technical amendment in the Federal Register.

Here is the formula, stripped of the statutory language:

New standard amount = $1,050,000 x (CPI-U at adjustment / CPI-U at January 1, 2022), rounded down to the nearest $50,000. New TEA amount = 75% of the new standard amount.

Two inputs and a rounding step. The statute does not say exactly which monthly index readings to use, and that choice affects the result.

The baseline date: January 1, 2022#

Inflation is measured from January 1, 2022, not from the RIA's enactment date of March 15, 2022. Because the CPI-U is a monthly index, analysts have used different readings for the baseline, such as the December 2021 index or averages over several months.

Source: BLS CPI-U, Series CUUR0000SA0 (not seasonally adjusted). Blue trust tier.

The baseline amounts#

The RIA set the current investment minimums at:

These have been the effective minimums since the RIA's enactment on March 15, 2022. They replaced the prior $500,000 and $1,000,000 amounts that had been set in 1990, apart from a period under the 2019 EB-5 Modernization Rule when the standard minimum was $1,800,000 and TEA was $900,000.

The CPI-U at adjustment#

A literal reading compares the baseline index with the most recent index published before January 1, 2027. Other readings, such as half-year or annual averages, give lower results. Published industry analyses in 2026 put cumulative CPI-U growth since the start of 2022 at roughly 10% to 20%, depending on the method.

What the formula would produce#

These are illustrations of the formula at different inflation readings, not projections or official figures.

Whether the 75% TEA figure is itself rounded again is not settled in public guidance. The technical amendment DHS publishes will show the method it used.

These examples carry a Yellow trust tier designation because the inputs are not final. The formula itself is statutory.

The rounding rule#

The statute rounds the adjusted amount down to the nearest $50,000. Rounding down, not to the nearest step, means:

A raw figure of $1,190,000 becomes $1,150,000, not $1,200,000.

A raw figure of $1,240,000 becomes $1,200,000, not $1,250,000.

Because the standard amount moves in $50,000 steps, the TEA amount moves in $37,500 steps. Small differences in the CPI reading can still move the result by a full step when the raw figure sits near a boundary.

Historical investment amount timeline#

The EB-5 program has only adjusted its investment minimums twice in its history. The formula approach is new.

1990 to 2019: three decades, no change#

Congress created the EB-5 program in 1990 with minimums of $1,000,000 (standard) and $500,000 (TEA). Those amounts stayed the same for nearly three decades. Adjusted for inflation, $500,000 in 2019 was worth roughly $255,000 in 1990 dollars.

2019 to 2021: the Modernization Rule#

In November 2019, a DHS final rule raised the minimums to $1,800,000 (standard) and $900,000 (TEA). It lasted until June 2021, when a federal court vacated the rule because the acting DHS secretary who issued it was not lawfully serving. The amounts reverted to $500,000 and $1,000,000.

March 2022 to present: the RIA#

The RIA set new statutory minimums of $1,050,000 and $800,000 and, for the first time, built in automatic future adjustments tied to the CPI-U. The formula means investment amounts track inflation without new legislation.

January 2027 onward: automatic adjustments every five years#

The next adjustment after 2027 is scheduled for January 1, 2032. Each adjustment measures cumulative inflation from January 1, 2022, not just the change since the last adjustment.

What this means after the September 30, 2026 deadline#

The investment adjustment and the grandfathering deadline are separate provisions.

Filing on or before September 30, 2026 secured protection for regional center petitions if the program lapses; that window has closed. Filing before January 1, 2027 still files at the current $800,000 TEA minimum.

Filing between October 1, 2026 and December 31, 2026 uses the current investment amounts, because the adjustment applies only to petitions filed on or after January 1, 2027. These filings have no grandfathering protection against a program lapse.

Filing on or after January 1, 2027 means the adjusted investment amounts and no grandfathering protection.

The dollar difference matters. An investor who files in December 2026 invests $800,000 in a TEA project. An investor who files in February 2027 invests the adjusted amount. On the illustrations above, that could be roughly $60,000 to $140,000 more for a TEA project. The exact difference will not be known until DHS publishes the new amounts.

The adjustment is automatic#

This is frequently misunderstood. The adjustment does not require action by Congress or a notice-and-comment rulemaking.

The statute says the amounts "shall automatically adjust." DHS must still publish the adjusted amounts as a technical amendment in the Federal Register, but that publication reports the result of the formula rather than making a new policy choice.

The increase would not take effect on January 1, 2027 only if Congress changed the law before then. No such change had been enacted as of November 7, 2026.

Use the threshold calculator#

EB5Status publishes a threshold projection calculator that models possible new investment amounts from published CPI data. Its results are estimates, not official figures.

Frequently asked questions#

Will my attorney know the exact new amount before it takes effect?#

Only once DHS publishes the technical amendment. Because the statute does not name the exact index months, estimates made before publication can differ by one or more $50,000 steps on the standard amount. Ask your attorney to confirm the published figures before you file in early 2027.

What if inflation drops significantly before January 2027?#

The formula measures cumulative inflation from January 1, 2022. The standard amount needs cumulative growth of only about 5% to move up one $50,000 step, and published analyses put the actual growth well above that. A modest price decline late in 2026 would not prevent an increase.

Does the CPI adjustment apply to direct EB-5 investments too?#

Yes. The adjustment applies to both the TEA and the standard investment minimums whether the investment is through a regional center or a direct new commercial enterprise.

When does the next adjustment after 2027 occur?#

January 1, 2032. The statute calls for adjustments every five years starting January 1, 2027. Each adjustment is measured from the same January 1, 2022 baseline.

Source: INA Section 203(b)(5)(C)(iii), as amended by the RIA; EB5Status analysis. Blue trust tier for statutory text; Yellow trust tier for illustrations.