US Golden Visa Explained: EB-5 Investment Requirements, Costs, and What You Actually Get

EB-5 grants lawful permanent residence, a green card, to foreign nationals who invest in a new commercial enterprise that creates at least 10 full-time jobs for US workers. You are not buying a temporary visa or a residency permit with conditions attached. A green card from EB-5 gives you the right to live and work anywhere in the US indefinitely, and after five years of continuous residence you can apply for US citizenship. The program is administered by USCID and operates under annual visa caps, which is why wait times vary dramatically by nationality.

The minimum investment since March 2022 is $1,050,000 for projects in standard areas and $800,000 for projects located in a Targeted Employment Area, a rural zone or an area with unemployment at least 1.5 times the national average. These figures are indexed and adjusted periodically by USCIS. Virtually all retail EB-5 deals are structured through USCIS-designated Regional Centers, which pool investor capital into large commercial projects such as hotels, mixed-use developments, and infrastructure, because it is far easier to demonstrate job creation through an indirect-count model than to build and staff your own enterprise from scratch.

Beyond the investment itself, applicants pay the I-526E petition fee, which USCIS raised to $11,160 in April 2024, plus the I-485 adjustment-of-status fee or consular processing fees if applying from outside the US. Regional Centers also charge administrative fees ranging from roughly $50,000 to $80,000 on top of the invested capital, and these fees are not part of the at-risk investment. Legal fees for a competent immigration attorney handling an EB-5 matter typically run $15,000 to $30,000. Total all-in cost for a TEA project therefore lands in the $900,000 to $950,000 range before the investment is returned, assuming the project performs.

EB-5 visas are subject to per-country annual caps of roughly 7% of the total employment-based green card pool. For applicants from China and India, this creates retrogression, meaning the demand exceeds the annual supply and priority dates move backward or stall. Chinese nationals who filed petitions several years ago are still waiting, with some estimates placing the backlog at a decade or more. Nationals of most other countries, including Brazil, South Korea, and countries across Europe and the Middle East, currently face no retrogression and can expect conditional green cards within two to four years of petition approval. The current Visa Bulletin published monthly by the State Department shows exactly where each country's priority date stands.

A green card makes you a US tax resident for federal income tax purposes, which means worldwide income is reportable to the IRS from the moment you become a lawful permanent resident. This is a consequence that surprises many EB-5 investors who hold businesses or investment accounts abroad. FBAR and FATCA reporting obligations apply immediately. For investors comparing the US program against programs in Portugal, Greece, or the UAE, where residency can be maintained without triggering full worldwide tax exposure, the US tax consequences deserve serious weight before committing capital. See how EB-5 total costs compare to European and other programs on a like-for-like basis.

EB-5 green cards are issued on a conditional basis for two years. Before those two years expire, the investor must file Form I-829 to prove the investment was sustained, the required jobs were created, and the capital remained at risk. USCIS processing of I-829 petitions currently takes anywhere from 24 to 48 months due to backlogs, but conditional status is automatically extended while the petition is pending, so there is no gap in lawful residence. Once I-829 is approved, conditions are removed and the investor holds a standard 10-year permanent resident card with full rights including the path to naturalization.