Increasing number of Indians prefer US Investor Visa over a green card

Increasing number of Indians are preferring US Investor Visa over a green card and are queuing up to spend million dollars to launch a business in the US. This is through investing and immigrate scheme sponsored by the government, the EB-5 visa program. It is a paid invitation to the non-US nationals to invest and obtain the US green card. The investor and the immediate family can obtain the green card, as quoted by the Economic Times.

The EB-5 US Investor visa has two pathways – direct and indirect. The first pathway involves launching a new business and creation of minimum 10 full-time jobs locally. In the second pathway, one can make an investment in an EB-5 project approved by the government.

The number of applications from India for EB-5 visa has increased thrice in last 3 years reaching 354 in 2016. It reflects the increasing inclination of the Indians to immigrate to the US. This data was revealed by a consulting group specializing in this program, NYSA.

The denial rate for Indian applications was fairly high in 2016 at 34%. This was due to the selection of inappropriate project and poor documentation. MD of NYASA Pankaj Joshi said that it is crucial for applicants of US Investor Visa to have proper documentation. They must also select the right project and the right partner. This will create required employment and investment returns, added Joshi.

As per the data of NYSA, 25% of the applications filed in 2016 from India were in direct EB-5 program project. This was out of the total number of applications filed. It is much higher than the global average of 5-7% via the direct pathway. It reflects that Indians prefer being entrepreneurs in the US than just green card holders.

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