Investment Criteria

Amount the investor has to invest for the EB-5 program.

The investor is required to invest a minimum of $1 million however if the investment is in a Targeted Employment Area the EB-5 applicant may invest a reduced amount of a minimum of $500,000 (The CMB Regional Center Investment Plan is designed for this lower investment threshold which is the minimum allowed by United States law to qualify for the EB-5 Visa/Green Card) in a high unemployment area which is defined as 150% of the national average unemployment statistic.

The Job creation requirement for every investor is ten new American jobs.

Each foreign national EB-5 Investor must create at least ten full time United States-based jobs. If the investment is not in an approved Regional Center the jobs must be directly created by the entity the investor is investing in. If the investor uses a Regional Center to make the investment the job creation requirement of ten jobs still exists however the investor can utilize both direct and indirect job creation to prove they have met the USCIS requirement. Additionally the Regional Center may use reasonable job measuring methodology to prove the indirect jobs.

The investor’s source of funds to fund the investment must be from a lawful source.

The investor must demonstrate that the capital is in fact from a legal source. For example the funds cannot be derived from a criminal enterprise. An investor may receive a gift of funds however in that case the USCIS will require information and track the source of the funds from the person who gave the gift. Loans are also credible source of funds however the investment in the enterprise cannot be used as collateral or be pledged in any way.

The investment must be at risk

The EB-5 applicant’s capital investment must be truly at risk. Guarantees of return of any capital are strictly prohibited, and if given negate the "at risk" requirement of the EB-5 law and the investors petition will be denied. There can be no redemption agreements. The entire capital must be at risk and therefore reserve accounts are also not allowed.

The enterprise must be a new commercial enterprise.

A new business is defined as one that was formed after November 29, 1990; and it must be a for-profit enterprise formed for the ongoing conduct of any lawful business. Under certain circumstances the law allows for expanding an existing business.

The law states the foreign national investor must participate in management of the new commercial enterprise.

The applicant must have some involvement in the management of the new commercial enterprise. The reason most Regional Centers are formed as limited partnerships is the very act of being a participant in a limited partnership satisfies the USCIS requirement of having a role in management of the partnership. Nearly all L.P.’s require the limited partner to vote on certain key issues.

The investor must qualify as an accredited investor

The USCIS wants investors to be sophisticated enough to understand the sometimes complex issues involved with this type of investment. Therefore the investors must meet the requirements as set forth for defining an accredited investor. An "accredited" investor, as that term is defined by Regulation D of the Securities Act, which means any investor meeting at least one of the following conditions:

1) any natural person whose individual net worth (or joint net worth with that person's spouse, if applicable) at the time of purchase exceeds $1,000,000; or

2) any natural person who had an individual income in excess of $200,000 or joint income with that person's spouse in excess of $300,000 in each of the two most recent years and who reasonably expects an income in excess of $300,000 in the current year; or

3) any other "accredited investor" as that term is defined in Regulation D as adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission; or

4) Has such knowledge and experience in financial and business matters that he or she is capable of evaluating the merits and risks of an investment in the Units, and of making an informed investment decision, and does not require the use of a Purchaser Representative.