If you are asking whether you meet the eb5 visa requirements, the short answer is: you need to make a minimum investment of $800,000 in a new commercial enterprise located in a targeted employment area, or $1,050,000 elsewhere, and that investment must create at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers. You also need to prove your capital came from a lawful source.
The EB-5 program is an employment-based immigrant investor visa program that offers foreign investors a direct path to a green card and permanent resident status in the United States. This checklist walks through every requirement so you can assess your position before you file.
What Are the Core EB5 Visa Requirements?
Congress created the EB-5 immigrant investor program in 1990 under the Immigration Act, and it has since become one of the most used investor visas routes to U.S. permanent residency. The program is administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and every applicant must satisfy four core eb-5 visa requirements before USCIS approves a petition.
Here is the checklist at a glance:
- Invest the required minimum investment amount in a new commercial enterprise.
- Ensure the investment creates at least 10 full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers.
- Prove the investor funds came from a lawful source.
- Actively manage or be involved in the commercial enterprise (unless investing through a regional center).
Each of these points has its own rules. The sections below explain them one by one.
Requirement 1: The Minimum Investment Amount
The EB-5 program sets two investment thresholds. Which one applies to you depends on where the new commercial enterprise operates.
The $800,000 Targeted Employment Area (TEA) Rate
A foreign investor qualifies for the lower $800,000 minimum investment if the project sits in a targeted employment area. A targeted employment area is either a rural area (defined as a place with fewer than 20,000 people that lies outside any metropolitan statistical area) or a high unemployment area where joblessness is at least 150% of the national average. Projects in qualifying infrastructure also fall into this tier. The Department of Homeland Security has the sole authority to designate high unemployment areas, and TEA status is valid for two years from the designation date.
Targeted employment areas also carry a reserve of set-aside visa numbers — 20% for rural projects, 10% for high unemployment areas, and 2% for infrastructure projects — which can mean faster processing times for many immigrant investors.
The $1,050,000 Standard Rate
If the project is not in a targeted employment area, the required investment amount rises to $1,050,000. Both thresholds were set by the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (the integrity act) and are scheduled to adjust for inflation on January 1, 2027. Investors who file their immigrant petition by September 30, 2026 are grandfathered into the current figures.
For a full breakdown of fees beyond the capital investment itself, see our guide to EB-5 visa costs.
Requirement 2: The New Commercial Enterprise
The EB-5 program requires that your capital investment go into a new commercial enterprise. This is defined as any for-profit activity formed for the ongoing conduct of lawful business in the United States. The business must have been established after November 29, 1990, or it must have been restructured or expanded after that date in a way that qualifies under USCIS rules.
What Qualifies as a New Commercial Enterprise?
The entity can take almost any legal form: a privately owned sole proprietorship, a partnership, a limited liability company, a corporation, a business trust, a joint venture, or a holding company together with its wholly owned subsidiaries. What it cannot be is a personal residence or a non-profit. The key test is that it is a genuine, for-profit commercial enterprise operating in the United States.
Some foreign investors choose to work in a new commercial enterprise they operate directly. Others invest through the regional center program, where USCIS-approved regional centers pool capital from multiple immigrant investors into larger ventures such as real estate development projects, hotel construction, or infrastructure projects.
Direct Investment vs Regional Center Investment
With direct investment, the investor places capital straight into the enterprise and must show active involvement in its management. Only direct jobs created inside that enterprise count toward the job creation requirement.
Through the regional center program, the investor can take a more passive role. Approved regional centers can count both direct jobs and indirect jobs — and induced jobs — created by the project. Up to 90% of the required positions can be jobs created indirectly, which makes it far easier to satisfy the job creation requirements through this route. The regional center program currently accounts for the large majority of eb-5 visas filed each year.
Requirement 3: Job Creation Requirements
Every qualifying investment must create at least 10 full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers. A full-time position requires a minimum of 35 hours per week. Part-time, temporary, seasonal, or intermittent roles do not count toward this total. The investor, their spouse, and any immediate family members are also excluded from the count.
Jobs Through a Direct Investment
In a direct investment, the enterprise must create the positions itself with a clear employer-employee relationship. These are counted as direct jobs. The investor must show that the jobs were created within two years of the filing date or will be created within a reasonable period based on the business plan.
Jobs Through USCIS Approved Projects
Through USCIS approved projects run by regional centers, the investment can also count indirect jobs and induced jobs created throughout the wider economy. An economic methodology — typically an input-output model — is used to calculate those figures. This flexibility is one of the main reasons the regional center program is so popular among immigrant investors.
The Troubled Business Exception
There is a special path for investors who put capital into a troubled business — a company that has been operating for at least two years and has lost at least 20% of its net worth in the 12 to 24 months before the filing date. An investor in a troubled business can satisfy the job creation requirement by preserving existing jobs rather than creating new ones, as long as the qualifying number of positions is maintained throughout the investor’s conditional period.
Requirement 4: Lawful Source and Path of Funds
USCIS requires every foreign national applicant to document both the lawful source of their investor funds and the complete path those funds took from origin to the new commercial enterprise. This is one of the most document-intensive parts of the EB-5 process and one of the most common reasons petitions are delayed.
What Counts as a Lawful Source?
Acceptable sources include salary and employment income, business profits, the sale of real estate or other assets at fair market value, inheritance, gifts (with full documentation tracing the donor’s funds), and loans secured by assets the investor personally owns. The key rule is that none of the investor’s investment capital can come from unlawful activity or from sources that raise national security concerns.
The capital invested must also be genuinely at risk. There can be no guaranteed return, no fixed buy-back right, and no promise that the money will be returned. Capital can take the form of cash, equipment, inventory, or other assets transferred at fair market value, but the entire minimum investment must be committed to the commercial enterprise.
Path of Funds Documentation
Investors must trace every dollar from its original source into the new commercial enterprise through bank statements, tax returns, sale agreements, gift letters, and legal transfer records. Gaps or unexplained transfers are a leading cause of Requests for Evidence from USCIS. Working with an experienced EB-5 attorney from the start of this process significantly reduces that risk.
Who Can Apply: Eligibility for the Investor and Family
The EB-5 immigrant investor visa program is open to any foreign national, regardless of nationality, country of birth, or current immigration status. There is no age requirement, no minimum level of education, and no requirement to speak English. Unlike other employment-based visa categories, the EB-5 program does not require a U.S. employer sponsor — the investor’s own qualifying investment is the basis of the petition.
Family Members Who Qualify
A single EB-5 investment covers the principal investor and their immediate family members: spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21. Each qualifying family member receives the same conditional green card as the principal investor, and all can live, work, and study anywhere in the United States. Children must remain unmarried and under 21 at the time of filing to qualify; this is a firm cut-off, though the Child Status Protection Act may preserve eligibility in some circumstances.
Applying From Inside or Outside the United States
Investors already in the United States on a valid nonimmigrant visa may be able to file Form I-485 for adjustment of status at the same time as their Form I-526E immigrant petition, provided a visa is available in their category. This concurrent filing route allows qualifying investors to obtain work and travel authorization within months.
Investors abroad go through consular processing. After the immigrant petition is approved and a visa number becomes available, the case transfers to the National Visa Center and then to a U.S. consulate, where a consular officer reviews the application and, if satisfied, issues the immigrant visa. Either route ends with a conditional green card valid for two years.
For a full walkthrough of the timeline from petition to permanent residency, see our EB-5 visa timeline guide.
The Path to Permanent Residency: From Conditional Green Card to Lawful Permanent Resident
When USCIS approves the immigrant petition and a visa number is available, the investor and their family members receive a conditional permanent resident card valid for two years. This is not yet full permanent residency — it is a conditional green card that gives the investor the right to live and work in the United States while they complete the investment and job creation requirements.
Within the 90-day window before the two-year anniversary of receiving conditional permanent residency, the investor must file Form I-829 to remove the conditions. This petition proves that the investment was sustained, the jobs were created, and all the original eb5 visa requirements were met. Once USCIS approves the I-829, the investor and family become lawful permanent residents with a standard 10-year green card.
From there, the investor may remain a permanent resident indefinitely or pursue U.S. citizenship through the standard naturalization process after five years. The EB-5 investor visa program is, at its core, an employment-based route to permanent resident status built on promoting economic growth through foreign investment and job creation.
Conclusion
The eb5 visa requirements come down to four things: a qualifying minimum investment in a new commercial enterprise, at least 10 full-time jobs created for U.S. workers, funds from a lawful source, and proper involvement in the enterprise. Meeting all four opens the door to conditional permanent residency and, within two years, a path to becoming one of the United States’ lawful permanent residents. The $800,000 targeted employment area threshold makes this route accessible to a wide range of foreign investors, particularly those who choose USCIS-approved regional center projects. If you are ready to explore your options, speaking with an experienced EB-5 lawyer is the best first step.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum investment for an EB-5 visa?
The minimum investment is $800,000 for a project in a targeted employment area (a rural area or a high unemployment area) or a qualifying infrastructure project. For all other projects the minimum investment is $1,050,000. Both figures are set to adjust for inflation on January 1, 2027.
Does my investment have to be in a specific type of business?
It must go into a new commercial enterprise that is a for-profit business formed in the United States. It cannot be a personal residence or a non-profit. Beyond that, the commercial enterprise can take many legal forms, including a limited liability company, corporation, partnership, or joint venture.
How do I prove the money came from a lawful source?
You must provide documentation that traces your investor funds from origin to the commercial enterprise. This typically includes tax returns, bank statements, sale records, loan agreements, and legal transfer documents. USCIS reviews this evidence closely, so gaps in the paper trail can lead to delays.
Can my spouse and children get green cards too?
Yes. Spouses and unmarried children under 21 are included in the principal investor’s petition at no additional capital requirement. Each family member receives a conditional green card on the same basis as the investor.
What is a targeted employment area (TEA)?
A targeted employment area is a rural area or a high unemployment area designated by the Department of Homeland Security. Rural areas are defined as places with fewer than 20,000 residents outside any metropolitan statistical area. High unemployment areas must have an unemployment rate at least 150% of the national average. Investing in a TEA qualifies you for the lower $800,000 minimum investment.
What happens after the conditional green card is issued?
Within the 90-day window before the two-year mark, you file Form I-829 to remove conditions. You must show that the investment was sustained, the jobs were created, and all eb5 visa requirements were met. Once approved, you and your family members become lawful permanent residents with a 10-year green card.
Can I invest through a regional center rather than directly?
Yes. Investing through USCIS-approved regional centers is by far the most common route. The regional center program allows indirect and induced jobs to count toward the 10-job requirement, making it easier to satisfy job creation requirements. You can learn more about how approved regional centers work on our regional center page.
