The fifth preference employment based visa (EB5) was created in 1990 as a way for foreign investors to gain United States permanent residency (and eventual citizenship if desired), through an investment in a new or pre-existing American business that sees the creation of at least 10 new full-time jobs for American workers. The L-1A Visa allows a manager or executive from a foreign nation to enter the United States for the purposes of furthering their business. In this article we will take a closer look at the L1-A Visa and the EB5 Immigrant Investor visas to see how their paths to a Green Card Visa compare and contrast.

L1-A Visa – As defined by the government’s website, the L-1A nonimmigrant classification: “enables a U.S. employer to transfer an executive or manager from one of its affiliated foreign offices to one of its offices in the United States. This classification also enables a foreign company which does not yet have an affiliated U.S. office to send an executive or manager to the United States with the purpose of establishing one. The employer must file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, on behalf of the employee.”

L1-A Visa General Qualifications of the Employer and Employee – To qualify for L-1A classification in this category, the employer must

1) Have a qualifying relationship with a foreign company (parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate, collectively referred to as qualifying organizations); and

2) Currently be, or will be, doing business as an employer in the United States and in at least one other country directly or through a qualifying organization for the duration of the beneficiary’s stay in the United States as an L-1. While the business must be viable, there is no requirement that it be engaged in international trade.

Doing business means the regular, systematic, and continuous provision of goods and/or services by a qualifying organization and does not include the mere presence of an agent or office of the qualifying organization in the United States and abroad.

Also to qualify, the named employee must

1) Generally have been working for a qualifying organization abroad for one continuous year within the three years immediately preceding his or her admission to the United States; and

2) Be seeking to enter the United States to render services in an executive or managerial capacity to a branch of the same employer or one of its qualifying organizations.

Executive capacity – This generally refers to the employee’s ability to make decisions of wide latitude without much oversight.

Managerial capacity – This generally refers to the ability of the employee to supervise and control the work of professional employees and to manage the organization, or a department, subdivision, function, or component of the organization. It may also refer to the employee’s ability to manage an essential function of the organization at a high level, without direct supervision of others.

More information on the L1-A visa can be found at USCIS.gov.

EB5 Immigrant Investor Visa – In stark contrast to the L1-A visa, lays the EB5 Immigrant Investor Visa. According to the government’s web page, to qualify for the Eb5 Visa Program you must:

1) Invest or be in the process of investing at least $1,000,000. If your investment is in a designated targeted employment area (A Targeted Employment Area is defined by law as “a rural area or an area that has experienced high unemployment of at least 150 percent of the national average) then the minimum investment requirement is $500,000.

2) Benefit the U.S. economy by providing goods or services to U.S. markets.

3) Create full-time employment for at least 10 U.S. workers. This includes U.S. citizens, Green Card holders (lawful permanent residents) and other individuals lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. (however it does not include you (the immigrant), or your spouse, sons or daughters).

4) Be involved in the day-to-day management of the new business or directly manage it through formulating business policy – for example as a Limited Partner, corporate officer or board member.

We see in this comparison that despite the fact that the L1-A and EB5 immigrant investor visas both rely on certain job based requirements being satisfied; the two are very different in nature and offer disparate paths to a green card visa.