Eb-5 us visas to be cut off early in 2015?

Photo: Fifth World Art

The EB-5 visa allows investors to obtain a Green Card for themselves and for their immediate families by investing $500,000 in officially approved job creation projects, with most coming through EB-5 Regional Centers.

The 2014/15 allocation started on 1 October and last year was the first time since the scheme began in 1990 that the 10,000 visa annual limit has been reached by a nation. In fact, there are still around 10,000 applications pending, despite 2014's allocation already having ran out.

With 75 per cent of these expected to be approved, immigration experts are warning investors that the China visa limit will be reached sometime early in 2015.

China has become an increasingly active player in global real estate in the past year, spending $22 billion on US real estate in the 12 months to March 2014, the highest amount spent by any nationality on American property.

The EB-5 has partly benefitted from the scrapping of the Canadian Millionaire Scheme, which required applicants to be worth at least CAN$1.6million (HK$11.2million) and agree to loan the Canadian government CAN$800,000 interest-free for five years. Since its cancellation, though, demand for US property has surged.

Indeed, compared to 2007, demand for the EB-5 has risen 700 per cent, with china taking up more than 80 per cent of last year's overall allocation.

Among approved EB-5 projects is the new luxury Resorts World hotel project in Las Vegas, which is being exclusively marketed by EB5Select.com. The $4billion first phase of the 3,500-room luxury resort hotel at the heart of the famous Las Vegas strip, is set to create 45,000 jobs and provides overseas investors with the chance to obtain a coveted EB-5 US visa.

EB5Select.com has seen so much interest in the visa from Chinese residents and others that it has increased its presence at overseas property consumer shows in China and elsewhere.

Now, US legal firm Law and Border, has suggested that with a huge backlog of applications pending, a cut-off date for 2015's allocation could be announced as early as January 2015.