Investment Amounts & Costs

The EB-5 program requires a minimum capital investment that varies by project location. As of early 2026, the minimum investment for a project in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA) is $800,000. For projects outside a TEA, the minimum is $1,050,000.

These amounts are subject to adjustment. The Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (RIA) established a mechanism for the investment minimum to increase based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). The next adjustment is projected to take effect on or after January 1, 2027, with the TEA amount expected to increase to approximately $900,000 and the non-TEA amount to approximately $1,150,000.

Investors who file Form I-526E before September 30, 2026 may qualify for grandfathering protection, which locks in the current investment amounts regardless of future increases.

The EB-5 program requires that capital be placed "at risk" for the purpose of generating a return. This means the investment must face the possibility of loss or gain — there can be no guaranteed return and no guaranteed repayment of principal.

If the project underperforms and the investor's capital decreases in value, this does not by itself affect the immigration petition. USCIS evaluates whether the investment was genuinely at risk at the time it was made, not whether it ultimately generated a profit. An investor whose project loses money but created the required jobs can still have a successful I-829 petition and receive a permanent green card.

However, if the project fails entirely — meaning it ceases operations and cannot demonstrate the required job creation — the immigration consequences are more serious. The investor may be unable to satisfy the I-829 conditions-removal requirements, potentially resulting in termination of conditional residence.

This is a complex area where immigration law intersects with investment risk. EB5Status publishes data on approval and denial rates but does not provide legal or investment advice. Investors should consult qualified immigration counsel and conduct independent due diligence on any project.

No. USCIS requires that the full minimum investment amount be deployed to the new commercial enterprise before or at the time of I-526E adjudication. "Deployed" means the capital has been made available to the job-creating entity and is at risk.

Some regional center projects use an escrow structure where funds are held until certain conditions are met (such as I-526E filing or a minimum number of investors). However, the funds must ultimately be released and placed at risk for the petition to be approved. An investor cannot receive conditional residence based on a promise to invest in the future.

Partial investment is not sufficient. If an investor has committed only $500,000 of a required $800,000 TEA investment at the time of adjudication, the petition will be denied.

The total cost of an EB-5 application extends well beyond the investment itself. The investment capital ($800,000 for TEA or $1,050,000 for non-TEA) is a capital commitment — it is intended to be returned after conditions are removed, typically five to seven years after the green card is issued.

The non-recoverable costs include USCIS filing fees, professional fees, and regional center administrative fees. As of fiscal year 2025, the USCIS filing fees alone total approximately $8,950 across the full process (I-526E, I-485 or consular processing, I-829, and biometrics).

Regional center administrative fees typically range from $50,000 to $75,000, depending on the project. Legal fees for immigration counsel range from $15,000 to $50,000, depending on case complexity and source-of-funds documentation requirements.

Total non-recoverable costs (excluding the investment itself) typically range from $77,000 to $149,000.

An investor may file only one I-526E petition at a time for the purpose of obtaining a single EB-5 visa. However, there is no prohibition on making additional investments beyond the minimum required amount, provided the primary investment satisfies all EB-5 requirements.

If an I-526E petition is denied, the investor may file a new petition with a different project. If a petition is approved but the investor wishes to change projects before the visa is issued, the process is more complex and may require filing a new petition, which resets the priority date.

For investors with approved I-526E petitions who are waiting for visa availability (particularly those from India or China with multi-year backlogs), maintaining the original investment in the original project is generally required to preserve the petition's validity.

The EB-5 investment is not guaranteed to be refundable. The "at-risk" requirement means the capital must face the genuine possibility of loss. Any arrangement that guarantees return of capital could render the investment ineligible for EB-5 purposes.

In practice, most regional center projects are structured with the intent to return investor capital after the I-829 conditions-removal period (typically five to seven years from green card issuance). The actual return depends on the project's financial performance.

Historical data on capital return rates is limited and self-reported by the industry. USCIS does not track or publish data on investment returns. Claims about return rates should be evaluated with caution, as they often reflect projections rather than audited outcomes.

There is no statutory minimum investment term expressed in years. The investment must remain at risk for the duration of the conditional residence period and until the I-829 petition is adjudicated. In practice, this means the capital is typically committed for a minimum of five to seven years from the date the conditional green card is issued.

The timeline breaks down as follows: I-526E processing (12-18 months currently), visa issuance or adjustment of status (variable, depending on country backlog), two-year conditional residence period, I-829 filing and adjudication (currently 12+ months). For investors without backlogs, the total commitment from investment to potential capital return is approximately five to seven years. For investors from countries with backlogs (India, China), the total period may be substantially longer.

The minimum investment is $800,000 for projects in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA), which includes rural areas, high-unemployment areas, and infrastructure projects. For projects outside a TEA, the minimum is $1,050,000.

These are minimum amounts. Some projects may require additional capital beyond the EB-5 minimum. The investment must come from lawfully obtained funds, and investors must document the complete path from income source to the investment account.