USCIS Releases New Edition of Form I-526 with New Changes and Information Requested From Investors


USCIS recently announced the release of a new edition of Form I-526, with the new edition dated 04/10/2017. Starting on June 9, 2017, USCIS will only accept the 04/10/2017 edition.  Until then, investors can use the 12/23/2016 edition. Both editions of Form I-526 are available to download at no cost on the USCIS website.

Investors should be mindful of several substantial changes to the new Form I-526 (04/10/2017 edition). At first glance, the length of the form has noticeably increased: up from 3 pages in the 12/23/16 edition to 13 pages in the new edition. The additional pages include new fields that request information on the investor, dependents, the Regional Center, NCE, and JCE(s). The 04/10/2017 edition includes the following new changes:

Are these new additions to Form I-526 a sign of other changes to come for the EB-5 program?  With the comment period already concluded on the proposed EB-5 Regulations (the deadline to submit comments on the Notice of Proposed Rule Making ended on April 11, 2017 at 11:59pm eastern), it remains to be seen if any of the proposed amendments will be implemented by USCIS. The proposed rules seek to increase the minimum investment amount for high employment areas from $1 million to $1.8 million, and increase the minimum investment amount for targeted employment areas from $500,000 to $1.3 million. On top of this, the Regional Center program is set to expire again on April 28, 2017. It still remains to be seen what changes, if any, will be made by the agency or by Congress in the next few weeks. We will be sure to keep you updated on any developments.


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National Law Review, Volume VII, Number 104