EB-5 Foreign Investment Visas

Jackson Walker’s EB-5 foreign investment and real estate team has the breadth of experience to advise clients on investments offering the opportunity to immigrate to the United States. The group’s multidisciplinary approach combines highly-skilled business immigration advisors with a nationally-recognized real estate team and corporate/securities counsel to achieve clients’ immigration objectives through investment transactions. The services provided to clients seeking the EB-5 process are organized around four major practice areas:

• EB-5 Immigrant Visas filed through your own company
• EB-5 Immigrant Visas filed through a Regional Center
• Development of Regional Centers and EB-5 projects
• Regional Center and EB-5 project compliance advice

L-1A And L-1B Intra-Company Transferee Work Visas

L-1 intra-company transferees are foreign workers who have been employed outside the U.S. by an affiliate, subsidiary, branch or parent of a U.S. company for at least one continuous year within the three years preceding the filing of a petition (or for at least one continuous year within the three years preceding admission to the U.S. if filing the petition while the foreign worker is in the U.S.), in a capacity that qualifies as executive, managerial, functional manager (L-1A), or specialized knowledge (L-1B), and who will perform services for the U.S. company in one of these categories as well.

EB-1(C) Multinational Manager or Executive Visas

The Multinational Manger or Executive (or EB-1C) category is designed for employees who:

• have been offered a regular full-time position in a managerial or executive capacity with a U.S. employer who has been doing business in the United States for at least one year, and
• have worked for a qualifying employer abroad in a managerial or executive capacity for one of the three years prior to entering the United States in nonimmigrant status.

Our investment immigration team is able to assist clients in determining if they qualify for this program, and walk them through the process from beginning to end.

EB-1(A) Extraordinary Ability Immigrants

The EB-1(A) category provides immigrant visa processing for individuals of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics. “Extraordinary ability” is defined as a level of expertise indicating that the individual is one of a small percentage who have risen to the very top of a field of endeavor.

EB-1(A) applicants do not need a U.S. employer, and they are exempt from the normal labor certification process. In order to qualify, the individual may file an immigrant visa petition himself or herself. The alien must seek entry into the U.S. to continue work in the area of extraordinary ability, and the alien’s entry will substantially benefit prospectively the United States.

Jackson Walker’s investment immigration team is equipped to assist clients in all aspects of compiling, documenting, and filing their evidence of qualifications, including documentation of national and international acclaim, or recognition in their field of expertise.

• L-1 and EB-1(C) multinational manager petitions – Submission of petitions for managers and executives including functional managers.
• E-1 Treaty Trader Applications – Submission of multiple E-1 applications including start-up operations to facilitate the expansion of businesses in involved in cross-border trade of goods and services.
• E-2 Treaty Investor Applications – Submission of multiple E-2 applications including start-up operations and to facilitate the growth and further development of investment in the U.S.O-1 Extraordinary Ability petition – Submission of petitions for individuals with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics.