USCIS Citizenship and Immigration Services Guidelines for the EB5 Green Card Process

2025 USCIS Guidelines for EB5 Green Card Process Might Just Surprise You

USCIS in 2025 has tighter rules, deeper background checks, and some seriously overlooked advantages most investors don’t even know exist. We all talk about $800K and job creation, but beneath that? There’s a whole legal framework that can either speed you up or knock you down.

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1. EB-5 Capital in the Traditional Capital Stack

When a foreign national invests through the EB5 loan program, their money is funneled into a New Commercial Enterprise (NCE), think of it as the entry point.

That NCE then sends the capital into a Job-Creating Entity (JCE), the actual project doing the work and hiring people.

EB5 Funds Can Flow in Two Ways:

• Equity Model – where the NCE owns a piece of the project
• Loan Model – where the NCE lends the money to the project

In most cases, EB5 capital sits in the mezzanine loan or preferred equity part of the stack. That means it’s not the first money out (senior debt gets that spot), but it’s not last either. This positioning makes it attractive to developers and acceptable to USCIS.

PS: Don’t miss the Bonus at the end
From rural visa set-asides and concurrent filings to priority date hacks and redeployment rules, this year’s EB-5 is about smart legal positioning.

If you’re using the EB-5 Loan Program, you could be in the perfect spot of compliance, reduced risk, and project preference, all while keeping more control than you thought possible.

Related article: Comparing Costs: Traditional EB-5 vs. the EB5 Loan Program

1. Investment Minimums

• $800,000 if you invest in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA)
• $1,050,000 for non-TEA projects

Since 2022, TEA designations are now made by USCIS, not individual states. That means no more loopholes or sketchy state-backed TEAs.

So if a regional center tells you, “We’ve always had TEA approval,” make sure it’s federally updated in 2025.

2. Priority Date Retention: The Underrated Insurance Policy

Filed an I-526 a while back and now want to switch projects or regional centers? You can retain your original priority date, as long as there wasn’t any fraud involved in your first application.

That means even if you jump ship to a new project, you don’t have to start the clock all over again. With the current visa pulse, especially with waitlists for India and China, this is a plus.

3.Visa Set-Asides: Faster Green Cards

2025 continues the three visa carve-outs created by the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act:

➨ 20% for rural projects

➨ 10% for high-unemployment areas

➨ 2% for infrastructure projects

Most are chasing big-city developments, completely ignoring rural projects, which are moving faster and face less retrogression.

If you’re from a backlog country, this route could be your express lane.

4. Concurrent Filing

Got an H-1B, F-1, or other valid visa status? Here’s a 2025 update you shouldn’t ignore:

You can now file your I-526E and I-485 together. That means applying for your green card + adjusting your status at the same time.

➨ Bonus: You can get work authorization (EAD) and travel parole while you wait.➨ Even better: You don’t have to leave the U.S. to do it.

This is especially for tech professionals, students, and business founders already here. USCIS literally gives you the green light to “live and work here” while your EB-5 is pending.

Must read: A Brief Introduction to EB5 Loan: Requirements, Cost and Benefits

5. Redeployment Rules

Let’s say your project finishes and repays your $800K before you’ve completed your two-year conditional green card period. Your funds must now be redeployed into another at-risk investment.

In 2025, USCIS is serious about checking if redeployment stays within the regional center’s scope and doesn’t violate “at-risk” standards.

What to do? Ask about redeployment options before you invest.

6. Integrity Act

➨ Regional Centers must file detailed annual compliance reports

➨ Everyone involved (project heads, fund managers) must pass background checks

➨ All investor funds must be independently administered or audited

Why does this matter? You get built-in transparency. Fewer chances of shady deals, and fewer projects that "vanish" with your money.

7. Visa Bulletin Real Talk: Especially for Indian & Chinese Investors

There’s still retrogression. India and China continue to face slower visa movement in the unreserved EB-5 pool. But here’s where strategy comes in:

➨ Filing under rural or high-unemployment categories gives you a new visa set-aside category, often with faster processing.

➨ You can even switch to these set-asides mid-process, if your original category is stuck.

Most investors have no idea this is possible.

8. Transfer of Underlying Basis

This is for those stuck with an old petition but holding a pending I-485.

In 2025, USCIS now allows you to switch the basis of your green card application from an old EB-5 to a new one. It takes:

➨ A clear cover letter

➨ Proper supporting docs

➨ An understanding of your case status

Bonus: The Whisper About a $5M “Gold Card”

There’s talk about replacing EB-5 with a luxury-style $5M “Gold Card” green card that doesn’t require job creation. Still just a proposal but it shows Congress is reevaluating high-net-worth immigration.

What’s HOT: Trump's $5 Million Gold Card 

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