People seeking permanent residence in the United States through investment will now have to pay more. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finalised a rule on Tuesday (September 29) more than doubling application fees for the EB-5 immigrant investor programme, effective November 30.
The EB-5 programme allows foreign investors and their families to live permanently in the United States if they invest a set amount in a US business that creates at least 10 full-time jobs.
The fee for Form I-526, used by individual investors, will rise from $3,675 to $7,615. The fee for Form I-526E, used by investors through approved regional centres, will rise from $3,675 to $7,850, plus a $75 technology fee per application.
The fee for Form I-829, used to remove conditions on permanent residence, will rise from $3,750 to $5,000. The fee for Form I-956, for initial regional centre designation, will rise from $17,795 to $44,115, and for Form I-956F, for approval of investment in a commercial enterprise, from $17,795 to $42,675.
The annual fee for Form I-956G, however, will fall from $3,035 to $2,165. A new Form I-527 has been introduced for amending old I-526 petitions, with a fee of $10,330.
Announcing the new fees, USCIS said most of its funding comes from applicants’ fees rather than taxes, covering the cost of reviewing applications, security checks, eligibility checks, fraud detection and running programmes.
Congress created the EB-5 programme in 1990 to boost investment and employment. Applicants must invest $1.05 million in a qualifying business, or $800,000 in a targeted employment area or infrastructure project, and create at least 10 full-time jobs. If they meet these conditions, the investor, their spouse and eligible children can apply for green cards.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report