{"id":4515,"date":"2016-06-05T23:35:12","date_gmt":"2016-06-06T03:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/?p=4515"},"modified":"2020-06-25T05:45:20","modified_gmt":"2020-06-25T09:45:20","slug":"watch-out-for-this-eb-5-visa-scam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapeartist.com\/blog\/watch-out-for-this-eb-5-visa-scam\/","title":{"rendered":"Watch Out For This EB-5 Visa Scam"},"content":{"rendered":"
US EB-5 visa scams are everywhere these days. As wealthy families from Asia and elsewhere seek to buy their share of the American dream, fraudsters are cashing in on this EB-5 visa scam.<\/p>\n
In this article, I will explain how the EB-5 visa scam works, give a few examples, and then tell you how to avoid these criminals.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s start with a little background on the EB-5 visa program.<\/p>\n
The US EB-5 visa guarantees wealthy foreigners an immediate green card and citizenship within 5 years<\/u> in exchange for an investment of $500,000 to $1 million. This investment must be in a business that employs a minimum of 10 people.<\/p>\n
The entire process (from application to US passport) takes about 7 years. The first 12 to 18 months is spent is waiting for your application to be processed.<\/p>\n
If you have the cash, an EB-5 visa is a great way to enter the United States – there are no lines and no quotas<\/u> once your application has been processed. Make your investment, keep the business going for 6 or 7 years, and you\u2019re golden. A green card and citizenship are guaranteed with the EB-5.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The EB-5 visa program combines three things scam artists love – wealthy foreigners, a need to invest, and the most valuable passport on the plant. If you\u2019re a millionaire, you probably want your kids to be educated in the US and to have access to the best of everything. You may also want an exit route in case you have trouble in your country.<\/p>\n
And this is where the EB-5 visa scam starts. Promoters set up businesses that guarantee investors an EB-5 visa, but they don\u2019t operate the business. They burn through the cash and the business shuts down.<\/p>\n
Remember that the EB-5 visa requires you employ a minimum of 10 people for 5 or 6 years<\/u>. If the business shuts down, your visa is terminated. You\u2019ve lost your investment and have nothing to show for it\u2026 and must leave the US immediately.<\/p>\n
These EB-5 visa scams happen all the time. For example, a California company just up the road from me raised $27 million from 50 Chinese investors promising EB-5 visas. The promoters, Charles Liu and Xin \u201cLisa\u201d Wang said they were building a cancer treatment center.<\/p>\n