The United States is set to sharply increase filing fees for foreign investors seeking permanent residency through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme, with the new charges taking effect on November 30. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has finalised the fee rule, which more than doubles some investor filing costs. The changes are expected to affect Indian investors and families who use the EB-5 route to seek US Green Cards through qualifying investments and job creation.

Under the revised fee structure, the filing charge for Form I-526, used by standalone EB-5 investors, will rise from $3,675 to $7,615. The fee for an initial Form I-526E petition, used by investors participating through an approved regional centre, will increase from $3,675 to $7,850. Both initial I-526 and I-526E filings will also be subject to a $75 technology fee. The I-526E increase represents a 114% rise, while the standalone I-526 fee will increase by about 107%.

The changes also affect investors at a later stage of the EB-5 process. The fee for Form I-829, which investors use to seek removal of conditions on their permanent resident status, will increase from $3,750 to $5,000. Regional-centre investors will also have to pay the programme's investor integrity fee. The revised structure increases the EB-5 Integrity Fund fee from $1,000 to $1,100 for I-526E investors, according to an analysis of the final rule.

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Regional centres themselves will face substantially higher charges. The fee for an initial Form I-956 application seeking designation as an EB-5 regional centre will rise from $17,795 to $44,115. The charge for Form I-956F, used to seek approval of an investment in a commercial enterprise, will increase from $17,795 to $42,675. However, not every fee is rising: the annual Form I-956G fee will fall from $3,035 to $2,165. The final rule also creates Form I-527 for certain investors seeking to amend older I-526 petitions, with a filing fee of $10,330.

USCIS has said the revised fee structure is intended to recover the costs of administering the EB-5 programme and provide resources for processing, background checks, eligibility verification and programme oversight. The changes also implement provisions of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, including measures involving audits, compliance reviews, site visits and efforts to detect fraud and abuse. USCIS is largely funded through fees paid by applicants and petitioners rather than direct taxpayer funding, making fee revenue a major source of support for its operations.

The EB-5 programme, created by Congress in 1990, allows qualifying foreign investors, their spouses and eligible children to seek permanent residence by investing in a US commercial enterprise and creating at least 10 full-time jobs for US workers. The required investment generally stands at $800,000 for qualifying projects in targeted employment areas or infrastructure projects, and $1.05 million for other qualifying investments. Those investment thresholds are separate from government filing fees, legal expenses and other costs associated with an EB-5 application.

The fee increase comes as Indian demand for the EB-5 programme has grown, while applicants also contend with visa availability and Green Card backlogs in other employment-based immigration categories. The new rule does not change the amount investors must put into qualifying projects, but it significantly raises the government charges associated with the application process. Investors considering the programme will therefore need to account for the higher filing fees alongside the required investment, legal costs and project-related expenses when assessing the overall cost of seeking permanent residency in the US.

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