One million and fifty thousand US dollars. Or about fifty-seven million Philippine pesos, give or take a few.
Yes, that’s all it takes to buy a US green card as an investor, family members included. Of course, the amount does not include relocation and other expenses, which may creep up to an additional fifty-thousand bucks. Still not bad if you have the money and the iron will to leave the comfort of your native land for the security of Uncle Sam’s foolproof economy.
For targeted employment areas or TEAs — areas that include infrastructure projects and high unemployment districts — the threshold amount is pegged even lower at $800,000, making the program even more accessible to foreign investors.
How does the program work? Under the current US immigrant investor’s visa program in place, a foreign investor can apply for an immigrant visa (or “green card”) for himself and his family if a capital investment is made for the establishment (or financial rehabilitation) of a commercial enterprise that is directly (or indirectly, in some cases) responsible for the creation of at least 10 permanent, full-time American jobs. Currently, the minimum investment amount stands at $1,050,000 for urban and high-employment areas and $800,000 for TEAs. With these relatively lower threshold amounts, many a rich Filipino can potentially qualify.
There’s a catch, however.
To qualify, the money or assets to be invested should be well-documented to be originating from lawful sources or undertaking. In other words, no financial hanky panky regarding the source of funds is allowed. Unfortunately, this will disqualify “wealthy” Filipinos working in the public sector whose fat bank accounts vis-à-vis their government salary are suspect as well as private citizens engaged in shady financial dealings such as tax evaders, money launderers, illegal gambling operators, etc.
To qualify for the program, the investment can be a stand-alone commercial enterprise or be part of an approved regional investment center’s commercial undertaking that is directly or indirectly the source of the required minimum number of jobs.
Notably, the investment can be in the form of cash, assets, inventory, or even a promissory note. Even indebtedness can qualify, as long as the investor is primarily responsible for the debt’s repayment and the collateral used to secure the debt amply covers the required minimum amount. More importantly, the investment should be “at-risk,” meaning there is no guaranteed rate of return on the capital. In other words, the investment should be an honest-to-goodness commercial venture with a risk of loss and potential for gain.
The initial step in the process, after all the preliminary undertaking involving the capital origination documentation and initial assets deployment has been accomplished, is the filing of an Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor. The petition will be approved and a corresponding “green card” or immigrant visa will be issued if all the program requirements have been met. Assuming that the commercial enterprise remains viable two years after the initial approval and that the capital investment continues to be “at-risk,” the conditions of residence will then be removed, and the investor (along with his family members) will be issued permanent “green cards.” This can eventually lead to U.S. citizenship if the immigrant investor desires a more stable future for himself and his family.
Fortunately for investors from the Philippines, there is no visa retrogression currently impacting the EB-5 immigrant visa category, which means a Filipino applicant and his family can immediately migrate to the US once the investor’s immigrant petition and immigrant visa application have been approved.