Continued from page 59
selective. After several isolated incidents of issuer misconduct,
investor due diligence has continued to increase. Appropriate
controls, clear compliance programs, and measures to protect
investors have become essential parts of project marketability
as this flight to quality has occurred, resulting in widespread
adoption of best practices by the EB-5 industry.
Many of the USCIS’ administrative challenges arise from
the complexity of the intersecting immigration and investment
processes. In response to this complexity, industry stakeholders
have developed innovative solutions to meet the unique needs
of EB-5. For example, our own solutions have been implemented on more than 400 EB-5 projects, providing increased
investor security, streamlined tracking, a complete audit trail,
and third-party loan and fund administration—much more
than the statute requires.
The Truth About EB-5: 30,000+ Jobs at No Cost
to the Taxpayer
At its core, EB-5 is a job creation program, and a highly
successful one at that.
An independent report commissioned by the EB-5 Coalition
estimates that the EB-5 program is currently creating over 30,000
jobs per year. On an annual basis the industry is contributing
more than $1.6 billion in foreign direct investment and contributing over $2.5 billion to GDP.
The EB-5 program creates these jobs at no cost to the U.S.
taxpayer. In contrast, each job created or preserved under
the American Recovery and Redevelopment Act of 2009 was
estimated to cost taxpayers between $185,000 and $278,000.
Critics of EB-5 often fail to recognize the successes of the
EB-5 program; in reality, its benefits far outweigh its flaws.
★
Celebrating 20 Years
of Excellence
Reid Thomas
Reid Thomas is the Executive Vice President for
NES Financial. Responsible for global sales and
marketing, he brings over 20 years of sales and
marketing leadership in both public and private
companies in high-growth Silicon Valley technology companies. Thomas’ past experience
includes leading sales with Voice Over IP pioneer
Sylantro Systems, driving revenue and market
share growth to a successful IPO with VINA
Technologies, and Octel Communications, which
was acquired by Lucent Technologies. Thomas is
a frequent author and speaker on EB-5.
Kaitlin Halloran
Kaitlin Halloran is Marketing Coordinator
at NES Financial. She is a frequent author of
articles, blog posts, presentations, and other
written content at NES Financial, providing
information for EB-5 issuers and investors alike
in the dynamic EB-5 marketplace. In her role
as Marketing Coordinator, Halloran’s responsibilities include managing NES Financial’s
investor marketing, including the Chinese-facing
website, social media and articles as well as
providing support to the company’s thought
leadership in the EB-5 industry.
Based in DC and staffed with US & Chinese lawyers,
VLG solves the most complex EB-5 cases,
RFE’s and RC Applications
Contact us for a free evaluation
Morris@VisaLawGroup.com
Visa Law Group, PLLC
1806 11th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
202-265-7200
GAO, Additional Actions Needed to Better Assess Fraud Risks and Report Economic Benefits , GAO-15-696
(Washington, D.C.: Aug. 12, 2015) at 25-26.
1
2
60
Ibid, 29.
EB5 INVESTORS MAGAZINE