The EB-5 program contributed $3.39 billion to the U.S. GDP and supported over 42,000 U.S. jobs during 2012. This is according to the “Economic Impacts of the EB-5 Program 2012: An Economic Development Program for the 21st Century” report released by the Association to Invest in the USA (IIUSA). These results are more than double than those seen in the 2011 report.

The following results are among those highlighted by IIUSA in the 2012 report:

• “Total economic impact, combining the benefits of EB-5 investments, household spending of immigrant investors and other EB-5 related spending, was $3.39 billion to U.S. GDP and supported over 42,000 U.S. jobs.

• Investment represents the largest component of EB-5 spending, with approximately $1.8 billion invested by EB-5 Regional Center investors.  These investments contributed $2.5 billion to U.S. GDP and supported 33,134 American jobs.

• Over 85 percent of EB-5 investment capital – $1.55 billion – was invested in the construction sector.  Other sectors seeing EB-5 investments include chemical manufacturing, mining, manufacturing, and power generation.

• Pennsylvania, New York, California and Illinois top the list of states with the largest level of investment, and these saw the largest investment impacts.  For example, more than 8,000 jobs were supported in California.

• Household spending by immigrant investors and their families contributed approximately $383 million to US GDP and supported more than 4,700 jobs in 2012.  The economic impact of household spending represents a permanent impact on the U.S. economy, as these families maintain spending patterns year after year.

• Spending on EB-5 related immigration services contributed approximately $477 million to U.S. GDP and supported nearly 5,000 jobs in 2012.  These expenditures include spending on flights, moving services, cars, investment and legal services and government fees.”

The report uses well-established economic modeling methods to track data on I-526, I-829, and I-924A applications, as well as approval/denial statistics for EB-5 Regional Centers to determine GDP and job growth impacts. IIUSA uses data measured by state and by impacted industry sector. This includes federal, state, and local tax revenue from EB-5 investments and household spending by investors.

IIUSA is the national trade association representing EB-5 Regional Centers. To view the “Economic Impacts of the EB-5 Program 2012: An Economic Development Program for the 21st Century” report, visit the IIUSA website.