3 Tips for Finding the Right EB-5 Immigration Attorney

There are many articles that explain what EB-5 visas are and what steps foreign investors interested in investing should take.  However, there’s little details explaining just how complex preparing an EB-5 petition truly is.  One wrong move by an inexperienced attorney can make for a very difficult EB-5 experience by a foreign investor.  What can key factors help a foreign investor determine which EB-5 immigration attorney is the best fit?  This article helps shed light on some of those key factors.

1. Understand Business & Immigration Law

Your EB-5 lawyer should, first and foremost, help guide you through the immigration process.  EB-5 visas are very different from many other types of visas currently available to foreign nationals simply because of the nature of the documents needed to satisfy the rules for an EB-5 also intersect with investment rules set forth by the Securities Exchange Commission.  A skilled EB-5 immigration attorney understands the focus of the representation is to guide an EB-5 investor in how to successfully prepare the EB-5 visa petition.  Advice about which EB-5 project to invest in, or which Regional Center has the best track record and will likely generate a return on investment are typically best left for a qualified and registered investment advisor.  However, a qualified EB-5 immigration attorney should have a solid understanding of business concepts as it is applied in the immigration field.

2. Experience Successfully Preparing EB-5 Visas

An EB-5 immigration attorney, who focuses on an EB-5 clientele, who has filed multiple EB-5 visas on a weekly or monthly basis, over the span of years, will have much more experience about the trends with how USCIS is reviewing EB-5 petitions, what issues have been consistently raised in a requests by the government for more documentation, and how to prepare a successful EB-5 petition so as to obtain an approval on the first round of review.  On the other hand, an immigration attorney who manages many aspects of immigration law and occasionally prepares an EB-5 petition will simply not have the benefit of an attorney who has much more expertise.  It’s always important to inquire as to how many of these types of petitions an immigration attorney has prepared in the past year, months, and weeks.  What is their success rate?

3. Direct Investments versus Regional Center

You may be interested in directly investing in a company or investing in a Regional Center instead.  Will your EB-5 immigration attorney have expertise in either of those areas?  Direct investment versus an investment in a Regional Center means your EB-5 immigration attorney will be preparing different types of petitions and may be looking for very specific types of documentation.  Moreover, your EB-5 immigration attorney will most likely be collaborating with the investment project managers’ business attorneys and other key stakeholders.  An experienced EB-5 immigration attorney will not only have experience working on your type of petition but will know what type of questions to ask (and how to respond to questions) with the stakeholders from your investment project managers’side.

How can you tell if the EB-5 immigration attorney you’ve been interacting with is qualified and experienced?

At the Jatoi & de Kirby, A.P.C., we know how important it is for you to get all the information necessary to qualify for an EB-5 visa.  Our attorneys have years of experience processing hundreds of cases.  We can advise on your current status and qualifications and will actively work with any agents or other business partners on your end.  Contact us for more information

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