USCIS response on EB-5 to 2017 Annual report

USCIS response on EB-5 to CISOMB 2017 Annual Report to Congress.

As the Annual Report noted, Congress has reauthorized the regional center program in a series of short-term extensions while continuing efforts to enact legislative reform of the employment-based fifth preference (EB-5) program. The regional center program is currently authorized through September 30, 2018.

CISOMB reported, and USCIS acknowledges, that EB-5 processing times are long and are generally getting longer. The continuing popularity of the EB-5 program has led to sustained high volumes of related applications and petitions.

Due in large part to several potential sunset dates in FY2015, 2016, and 2017, USCIS received more than 51,000 EB-5 applications and petitions from January 1, 2015 through December 31, 2017, which is 80.3% more than the agency received from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2014.
Although the influxes of receipts hindered USCIS’ efforts to reduce processing times in FY 2016, the agency continues to take steps to improve the processing times for Form 1-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur; Form 1-829, Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status; and Form 1-924, Application for Regional Center Designation Under the Immigrant Investor Program.

In response to the significant increase in application and petition receipts, USCIS has taken many actions to improve overall program efficiency, including the following:

•  Concentrating resources to review and adjudicate aging cases. USCIS has reduced the number of aging cases (those outside of posted processing time) and continues to focus on reducing processing times.
•  Continuing to hire adjudicators and economists to reduce the backlog. As of July 27, 2017, the Immigrant Investor Program Office (IPO) had 185 on-board full-time employees, which is more than six times its staffing at the beginning of FY 2014. FPO is currently recruiting and hiring to reach a target authorized staffing level of 247 by the end of Calendar Year 2017.
•  Improving operational efficiences. USCIS has created a new team within IPO comprised of economists and adjudicators to focus on adjudicating the Form I-829. Additionally, USCIS has continued to focus on standardizing and better managing assignment of EB-5 cases in FY 2017 to improve adjudication of cases.
•  Engaging with stakeholders. USCIS continues to engage its stakeholders through frequent events in which the agency informs them of operational updates, offers filing tips, and provides the latest statistics on processing for each form type. Improvements made operationally and through regularly scheduled engagements with stakeholders are expected to reduce delays in the processing of EB-5 applications and petitions.

A regulatory priority for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is reforming the EB-5 program. Recently DHS, after consulting USCIS, advanced several regulatory proposals related to the program. In January 2017, DHS published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which proposed, among other changes, to increase the minimum investment amounts for new EB-5 petitioners and reform the targeted employment area designation process. DHS also published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking public input on potential changes to certain aspects of the EB-5 regional center program. A number of the potential regulatory changes discussed in both the NPRM and ANPRM are intended to further support and enhance EB-5 program integrity. DHS is currently considering public input received from both the NPRM and ANPRM.

In addition to its regulatory activities, DHS continues to provide technical assistance as requested on proposed legislative reforms of the EB-5 program. DHS and USCIS have also taken steps within their authorities to internally improve program integrity and administration, including:

• Synthesizing and aligning policy guidance regarding the eligibility requirements for EB-5 regional centers and immigrant investors in the USCIS Policy Manual;
• Using USCIS’ Administrative Site Visit and Verification Program to conduct EB-5 site visits by the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS);
• Establishing a dedicated compliance division focused on regulatory compliance, which enhances EB-5 program integrity by performing regional center compliance reviews and verifying information in regional center applications and annual certifications;
• Conducting remote interviews of select Form 1-829 petitioners;
•  Publishing revised forms to enhance data collection to support improved vetting of regional centers, regional center principals, and individual petitioners, as well as ensuring appropriate application and petition fees to support these enhanced vetting and compliance efforts;
•  Terminating more regional centers in FY 2017 for failure to comply with continued participation requirements than in any previous year; and
•  Posting termination notices, redacted as appropriate, in addition to lists of currently designated and terminated regional centers on the USCIS website to improve program transparency and facilitate investor due diligence.

USCIS will continue in its efforts to ensure that the BB-S program is administered efficiently and securely while working towards improving service to petitioners, applicants, and other stakeholders.

Source: USCIS