EB 5 Article

India EB-5 Investment

Program Overview

Under this program, entrepreneurs (and their spouses and unmarried children under 21) are eligible to apply for a greencard (permanent residence) if they:

• Make the necessary investment in a commercial enterprise in the United States; and
• Plan to create or preserve 10 permanent full-time jobs for qualified U.S. workers.

This program is known as EB-5 for the name of the employment based fifth preference visa that participants receive. US Congress created the EB-5 Program in 1990 to stimulate the U.S. economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors. In 1992, Congress created the Immigrant Investor Program, also known as the Regional Center Program. This sets aside EB-5 visas for participants who invest in commercial enterprises associated with regional centers approved by USCIS based on proposals for promoting economic growth.

For many Indian Nationals the EB-5 visa program is the fastest route to a "greencard". In return for an investment of either USD 500,000.00 or USD 1,000,000, an Indian investor, their spouse and children under the age of twenty-one can receive permanent residency in the United States.

US Global have the necessary expertise and know how to assist on all aspects of the investment. Involved in the Indian EB-5 market, US Global is well versed in the special considerations facing Indian EB-5 applicants. Obtaining the right impartial advice is critical. US Global can recommend an experienced U.S. lawyer so they can best assist Indian EB-5 visa applicants through any issues or questions they might have.

Investing in a Regional Center EB-5:

Every EB-5 Investor has to make a decision whether to apply for their EB-5 based “greencard” through the Regional Centre or Direct program. In our experience many Indian investors confuse the concepts of risk and control when making this decision. While the Direct EB-5 Program allows an investor to invest in their own business a direct investment can be higher risk than an EB-5 Regional Center based investment.

Making an EB-5 qualified investment through a Regional Centrecanbea simple and effective route to U.S. Permanent Residency (a"GreenCard"). US Global works with the most reliable Regional Centers in the US.

Funding your EB-5 Investment:

The Reserve Bank of India ("RBI") and the Liberalized Remittance Scheme ("LRS")

The RBI promulgates rules that allows Indian Nationals to remit funds out of India. Overtime these rules have become more and more complex. Under LRS, the RBI allows Indian Residents to remit funds abroad up to a notified limit without prior permission from the RBI. However, many investors do not understand that it is not as simple as being allowed to transfer the applicable allowed amount each Indian tax year, additional restrictions apply. With penalties for failure to comply with these extra restrictions reaching 300% of the amount transferred expert advice is required.

Over recent years the RBI has varied the amount of capital resident Indian Nationals are allowed tor emit outside India using the LRS.The RBILRS limit currently stands at USD 50,000.00 per person per Indian tax year.

In July 2015, the RBI issued a circular purporting to severely restrict the ability of Indian nationals to remit funds outside of India to make an investment that qualifies that investor for Emigration purposes. In February 2016 the rule against emigration was changed, however investors need to carefully structure their funds before remitting them abroad.

Preventing Unnecessary Taxes

Before making any investment in the United States westrongly encourage Indian Nationals to take appropriate tax planning advice. Failing to do so can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars of unnecessary tax liabilities. An experienced tax advisor should be familiar with the terms of the dual taxation agreement between the United States and India.

Preventing Unnecessary Taxes

Processing Your Application

Your application MUST be filed in the United States where it can be the subject of questions and processes that a U.S. based law firm can address for you. All EB-5 Petitions are currently processed in Washington DC.

Once your application has been approved in the U.S., applicants resident in India will be required to attend an immigrant visa interview at a consulate in India. All consular immigrant visa interviews in India are either in Mumbai or Delhi.