EB-5 Investment Amount Increase Delayed

The Office of Management & Budget has indicated the EB-5 visa investment amount may be increased in August 2018.  However, a few days ago, there was a hearing in Washington, DC where the head of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said that the proposed regulations increasing the EB-5 investment amount have been delayed, possibly until the end of September or beyond.

EB-5 I-526 Real Processing Time

I am often asked, what is the processing time for an EB-5 I-526 petition?  I have gathered eight recently approved I-526s and the processing times range from 13 to 21 months.  Here are the processing times of these petitions:

Date Approved                  Date Filed                  Processing Time

05/15/2018                      04/04/2017                13 months
05/13/2018                      03/10/2017                14 months
03/23/2018                      11/18/2016                16 months
04/26/2018                      12/09/2016                16 months
12/12/2017                      06/27/2016                18 months
04/21/2018                      08/19/2016                20 months
05/14/2018                      09/30/2016                20 months
09/26/2017                      12/15/2015                21 months

The USCIS now posts a time range that shows how long it is taking to process a case from the date received.  Today, that window is 20 months to 25.5 months.  Currently, I-526s filed before May 22, 2016 are considered beyond the normal processing times.  Petitioners whose receipt date is before this Case Inquiry Date may submit an “outside normal processing time” service request for a decision.

Separating Families

We have all been reading about the horrible Trump policy of separating children from their migrating families at the border.  Many of my friends have been asking me what they can do about this situation. 

I have been talking with two immigration attorney friends who are helping migrants in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas.  The conditions faced by the children and their parents, even when detained together, are deplorable.  My friends told me about a huge warehouse filled with children, where rooms are divided with chain-link fences. See: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2018/06/06/does-the-u-s-keep-immigrant-children-in-cages/?utm_term=.260a03fcb797. 

While President Trump has issued an executive order to put an end to separating children from their parents, these migrants still face severe humanitarian problems.

Church World Service said the President’s order undermines real solutions to family separation and that family separation will persist, as parents sentenced to jail time will be separated from their children while in custody.  

My immigration lawyer friends in Texas say these children and their parents urgently need legal and other help. In Texas, there are a few excellent agencies that are helping these children and their parents. They are overwhelmed and desperately need funding.  One agency recommended by my colleagues in Texas is ProBar, which provides legal help in addition to clothes, diapers, shelter, etc. 

Please join me and send a generous contribution to ProBar:

• Electronically: https://donate.americanbar.org/immigration 
• To mail a check: Make the check payable to the American Bar Association – on the Memo Line indicate: ProBar Children’s Project. Mail to 202 S 1st St., Suite 300, Harlingen, TX 78550-9155