-On June 22, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, in Behring Regional Center LLC v. Wolf, 20-cv-09263-JSC, vacated the then policy of requiring $900,000 for EB-5 investment.
As such, USCIS we will apply the EB-5 regulations that were in effect before the rule was finalized on Nov. 21, 2019, including:
- No priority date retention based on an approved Form I-526;
- The required standard minimum investment amount of $1 million and the minimum investment amount for investment in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA) of $500,000;
- Permitting state designations of high unemployment TEAs; and
- Prior USCIS procedures for the removal of conditions on permanent residence.
In essence USCIS is applying the old Rules allowing for the EB-5 investment threshold of $500,000.
The EB-5 Program consist of both a temporary Regional Center Program and a permanent Direct program.
-The Regional Center Program has lapsed and is currently waiting for Congress to pass a Bill to extend. As such, USCIS is not accepting Regional Center EB-5 applications at this time.
-The Direct Program is ongoing and applications for Direct EB-5 may continue to be filed.