USCIS FOIA Release Reveals 2024 EB-5 Petition Volumes and Approval Rates

A comprehensive FOIA release from USCIS on January 8, 2025 provides detailed statistics on EB-5 petition activity throughout 2024. The data reveals that approximately 14,200 EB-5 petitions were filed during calendar year 2024, representing an 18 percent increase from 2023 filings. Rural reserved category petitions accounted for 4,100 filings, while high unemployment reserved category petitions totaled 3,800 filings. Unreserved petitions comprise the remaining 6,300 filings across all eligible territories.

The approval rate for all EB-5 categories reached 87.2 percent, with rural reserved petitions showing an 89 percent approval rate. High unemployment category approvals reached 86.8 percent, while unreserved category approvals came in at 85.3 percent. The data also indicates that processing times for reserved categories averaged 20 months, compared to 26 months for unreserved petitions, demonstrating the effectiveness of the reserved visa carve-out implemented in 2022. Regional centers report that these metrics reinforce investor confidence and support strong demand for project participation.

The FOIA release includes detailed breakdowns by service center, national origin, and project type. This granular data enables researchers and practitioners to conduct detailed analysis of program trends and make informed decisions regarding project development and investor recruitment strategies.