Skip to main content

Choosing Between Direct EB-5 Investment and Regional Center Investment

By February 4, 2025EB-5 Visa
Feet and arrows on the ground as a symbol of potential options

When considering the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, applicants often face the choice between a direct EB-5 investment or an investment through a regional center. While one option isn’t universally “better” than the other, the right choice depends on your goals and preferences. Let’s explore the key differences to help you decide which path aligns best with your needs.

Direct EB-5 Investment

A direct investment involves actively investing in and managing your own business.

Who Chooses Direct EB-5?

  • Entrepreneurs already managing businesses in the U.S., such as E-2 visa holders, who want to scale their operations and gain a green card.
  • Investors seeking control over business operations, hiring decisions, and profitability.

Advantages of Direct EB-5

  • Control: You make decisions regarding the business, including hiring and operations.
  • Profit Potential: Earnings from the business are directly tied to your investment.
  • Flexibility in Business Type: You can invest in a business that aligns with your expertise or interests.

Challenges of Direct EB-5

  • Active Role Required: You must manage the business actively.
  • Job Creation Responsibility: You must directly create at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers.

Regional Center EB-5 Investment

An investment through a regional center is a more passive approach where your funds are pooled with other investors to support larger projects.

Who Chooses Regional Center EB-5?

  • Investors seeking a hands-off approach who prefer not to manage the day-to-day operations of a business.
  • Those focused primarily on obtaining a green card rather than financial returns.

Advantages of Regional Center EB-5

  • Passive Investment: No active management of the business is required.
  • Indirect Job Creation: Jobs created by the project are often calculated using economic models, not direct hiring.
  • Streamlined Process: Regional centers typically handle the paperwork and compliance requirements.

Challenges of Regional Center EB-5

  • Minimal or Negative Returns: Investors may receive limited financial gain from their investment.
  • Reliance on Regional Center: Your success depends on the performance and management of the regional center.

Key Considerations

  1. Level of Involvement
    • If you want control and direct involvement, choose a direct investment.
    • If you prefer a passive role, consider a regional center.
  2. Primary Goal
    • If securing a green card is your top priority, a regional center may be the easiest option.
    • If you also want to grow a business, direct investment offers greater opportunities.
  3. Risk Tolerance
    • Both options carry risks, but regional centers require trust in third-party management, while direct investments depend on your own business acumen.

Conclusion

Whether you choose a direct EB-5 investment or invest through a regional center, the decision should align with your financial goals, desired level of involvement, and immigration objectives. At Scott Legal, P.C., we are here to guide you through every step of the EB-5 process, ensuring you make the choice that best suits your circumstances.

FREE EB-5 Visa Resources

Click on the buttons below in order to claim your free EB-5 Visa Guide, sign up for our free EB-5 Visa Webinar, or watch our EB-5 Visa videos.

Download Our EB-5 Visa Guide
Sign Up For Our EB-5 Visa Webinar
Watch Our EB-5 Visa Videos

Set up an EB-5 Visa Consultation

For a dedicated one-on-one EB-5 Visa consultation with one of our lawyers, click on the button below to schedule your consultation.

Schedule a consultation

This website and blog constitutes attorney advertising. Do not consider anything in this website or blog legal advice and nothing in this website constitutes an attorney-client relationship being formed. Set up a one-hour consultation with us before acting on anything you read here. Past results are no guarantee of future results and prior results do not imply or predict future results. Each case is different and must be judged on its own merits.

Leave a Reply

FREE WEBINARS