EB-5 offers immigration opportunities through investments

Employment-Based 5 (EB-5) is a United States (US) visa programme created in 1999 to enable foreign investors obtain U.S. visa by investing in businesses such as hotels, apartments, office buildings, casinos and so on that will in turn benefit the U.S. economy and create jobs.

With the primary purpose of education, the EB-5, a green card visa programme offers subscribers a minimum of $500,000 returnable investment, as well as low school fees to subscriber’s children. The investor demonstrates that the investment capital has come from a legal and traceable source.

The programme, which is being supported by Atlantic American Partners, is an extension of a 45-year-old investment bank and private equity firm.

Recently, its Managing Director, Emerging Markets, Africa, Daniel Ryan spoke with The Guardian over lunch about the EB-5 programme.

Ryan disclosed that the investment of $500,000 would increase to $900,000 by November 21 this year, hence interested participants are advised to maximise the opportunity given.

He said the investment must be from a legal source, proving that the investor and/or family has not broken any U.S. Immigration laws, or has a past criminal record.

According to him, “the EB-5 was intended to create jobs, the incentive is that foreign investors have the ability to educate their families in America at a very low cost, and work anywhere in the US.”

He noted that the process takes about two years to obtain the green card, adding, “there is no language or age restriction on the programme, and it allows for dual citizenship as one does not have to give up his or her original citizenship.”

He pointed out that the EB-5 programme gives out 10, 000 visas yearly, and so far about 615 families have benefitted from it, where 30 beneficiaries are Nigerians.

He listed among other benefits of EB-5 as, “permanent residency for yourself, spouse, and children under 21 years of age, access to public elementary, middle and high-school schools and lower cost in-state tuition at public colleges and universities, ability to travel to and from the U.S without a visa, freedom to live, work and retire anywhere in the U.S, qualification for social security and high quality medicare and eligibility for U.S citizenship after five years.”