IN THIS GUIDE · Distinguish a business purchase from a qualifying EB-5 proposal
Identify what the proposed purchase establishes
Hypothetical example: an investor is comparing a direct business acquisition with a separate regional-center proposal. Record each structure accurately and do not borrow job claims or terms from one to support the other. A profitable operating company is not automatically a qualifying EB-5 case. Write a separate fact sheet for each possible structure. State who owns the new commercial enterprise, how money flows, and whether the job evidence is direct or tied to a regional-center methodology. That prevents a reader from using an attractive feature of one proposal to fill a missing element in another.
Examine the applicable job methodology
Identify the actual standalone or regional-center structure and the rules relevant to qualifying job creation, generally ten jobs. Have acquisition-related facts and the proposed job evidence assessed. Do not assume every existing job on a payroll counts toward the particular proposal. Identify the hiring model, expected positions, hours, payroll employer, and dates. Existing payroll should be analysed, not assumed to count. The decision is whether the plan can support the required qualifying employment under the structure actually chosen, including the applicable treatment of indirect jobs where relevant.
Review the capital and its history
Confirm the current applicable investment threshold and actual commitment at risk. Trace lawful source and path and distinguish fees from invested capital. A large purchase price does not resolve funding history, capital treatment or every project requirement. Prepare a source-and-path chronology from the initial lawful source through every account, exchange, loan, gift, or sale. Explain records that are unavailable rather than silently skipping them. A clean commercial contract does not replace proof of how the capital became available to the investor.
Keep diligence and immigration outcomes separate
Review commercial risk, legal documents and the individual immigration case. Neither business value nor a sponsor’s presentation guarantees approval, repayment or visa availability. Family and CSPA questions need individual assessment; filing does not automatically freeze a child’s age. Keep commercial diligence distinct from immigration evidence. Valuation, customer concentration, guarantees, exit rights, and job forecasts affect risk but do not decide eligibility alone. Family planning should also be separate, because derivative eligibility, age calculations, and visa availability are individual matters.
Use the current capital, job and residence conditions
As checked September 7, 2026, the standard capital minimum is US$1,050,000, or US$800,000 for a qualifying targeted employment area or infrastructure project. Statutory adjustments begin January 1, 2027; confirm the filing-date amount. At least ten qualifying permanent full-time jobs are required, with the applicable standalone or regional-center method assessed. The investor petition does not itself grant residence: the applicable immigrant-visa or adjustment process follows. Conditional residence then requires removal of conditions, with Form I-829 generally filed in the 90 days before its second anniversary. Plan for the full life cycle. After conditional residence is obtained, the investor later seeks removal of conditions with Form I-829 in the prescribed window before the second anniversary. Maintain capital and employment records from the outset, because later proof cannot be reconstructed reliably from a promotional summary.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.