EB-5 Program Annual Report: FY2025

Fiscal year 2025 represented a pivotal year for the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program. Three years after the passage of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act (RIA) in March 2022, the program experienced sustained growth in filings, meaningful improvements in processing efficiency, and the maturation of the new compliance infrastructure. FY2025 confirmed that the post-reform program has moved well beyond its initial transition period and into a phase of operational stability and expansion.

I-526E receipts grew to an estimated 6,500+ petitions, up from approximately 4,800 in FY2024 and just 320 in the program's first partial year under the new framework. USCIS made measurable progress reducing processing times, particularly for rural designated projects, which now enjoy median processing timelines of 11 to 17 months. Approval rates for both I-526E and I-829 petitions remained strong, indicating that the quality of petition filings has generally kept pace with the volume increase.

On the visa availability front, the three set aside categories introduced by the RIA (Rural, High Unemployment Area, and Infrastructure) remained current for all countries of chargeability throughout the fiscal year. Unreserved visa availability for China and India continued to experience retrogression, a trend that EB5Status expects to persist into FY2026.

The most significant date on the horizon is September 30, 2026, the grandfathering deadline established by the RIA. Investors who file their I-526E petitions before this date receive certain protections that may not be available to those who file afterward. This deadline is expected to drive an acceleration in filing volumes throughout FY2026.

Processing time improvements were among the most notable developments in FY2025. I-526E median processing time declined from over 40 months at the start of the fiscal year to approximately 25.5 months by Q3, representing a substantial reduction in wait times for investors.

The improvement was most pronounced for rural designated projects, which benefited from USCIS prioritization. Rural I-526E petitions saw median processing times of 11 to 17 months, making them the fastest path through the EB-5 system. High Unemployment Area (HUA) designated petitions processed in approximately 24 to 36 months, while unreserved petitions (the largest share of the queue) ranged from 36 to 52 months.

I-829 processing times remained elevated at approximately 35 months, though USCIS has signaled a commitment to reducing this backlog. The I-829 queue consists primarily of legacy I-526 investors who filed their initial petitions prior to the RIA, and is expected to decline as this cohort works through the system.

For current processing time estimates and historical trends, visit the Processing Times Dashboard.

FY2025 marked the first full fiscal year of EB-5 Integrity Fund operations, the compliance mechanism established by the RIA and funded through mandatory fees collected from investors and regional centers. The Integrity Fund supports USCIS in conducting audits, compliance reviews, and site visits of regional center operations.

As of the end of FY2025, there were approximately 900 designated regional centers in the United States, though only a subset of these are actively sponsoring new EB-5 projects. USCIS continued to issue termination notices to regional centers that failed to maintain compliance with the new regulatory requirements, including annual certification filings, fund administration standards, and third-party audit requirements.

The compliance landscape has had a notable impact on investor decision making. Attorneys and investors increasingly evaluate regional center compliance history as a key factor in project selection, and the availability of compliance data through USCIS publications has improved transparency in the market.

For a detailed list of active regional centers, compliance review outcomes, and termination notices, visit the Data Catalog.

Several significant policy developments shaped the EB-5 landscape in FY2025:

• 1USCIS Policy Manual Updates: USCIS issued multiple updates to Volume 6, Part G of the Policy Manual, clarifying guidance on concurrent filing eligibility, source of funds documentation standards, and the interaction between I-526E and I-485 adjudications.
• 2TEA Designation Methodology: USCIS finalized guidance on how Targeted Employment Areas are determined under the RIA, including the use of American Community Survey data and the methodology for calculating unemployment rates in census tracts.
• 3Integrity Fund Operational Guidance: USCIS published operational guidance on the scope of Integrity Fund activities, including the standards for regional center audits and the criteria for issuing Notices of Intent to Terminate.
• 4Fee Schedule Adjustments: The USCIS fee schedule that took effect in FY2024 continued to apply throughout FY2025. The I-526E filing fee remained at $3,675, and the Integrity Fund fee remained at $1,000 per investor.

For ongoing policy monitoring, visit the Reform and Integrity Act explainer and the Reauthorization timeline.