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| Invest Rs2 crore, get a green card |
The EB-5 US visa scheme is finding several takers from A’bad three years after its introduction
By Jumana Shah
Immigrating to the United States might have just got
a shade simpler - at least for the moneyed.
The US has opened its gates to the well heeled in
the society from all over the world by offering them
a Green Card on an investment of US $500,000 (about
Rs2 crore) in the country.
Simply put, under the employment-based preference
type of US visa-5(EB-5) scheme, if one invests Rs2
crore in a business proposition in the US, which provides
employment to at least 10 people, then the head of
the family with spouse and children under 21-years
of age can immigrate to the US within a year and acquire
a Green Card within two years.
The US has a quota of 10,000 visas every year. Of
these, the requirements of only 3,000 are fulfilled
every year and not more that 35 people from India
have immigrated under this programme yet. Now with
rupee appreciating, several high net-worth individuals
(HNIs), real-estate developers and brokers have shown
interest in utilizing this scheme to get entry into
the US, particularly by investing in realty.
However, it is interesting to note that 50% of those
who immigrated from India under EB-5 have been Gujaratis.
This has brought real estate development company American
Life Inc’s Henry Liebman and Mumbai-based immigration
lawyer-consultant Michael Phulwani to Gujarat on a
three-day tour to spread awareness about the programme
and meet prospective investors. With Ahmedabad-based
visa consultant Lalit Advani, they will be meeting
up to 12 interested parties over the coming two days.
"We have got phenomenal response from Gujaratis, be
it here in Ahmedabad or other parts of the country.
With the country's booming economy, Rs2 crore,
which two years ago was out of reach for many, is
not that big a deal now. We are highly optimistic
about attracting investments from India in US realty,"
Liebman said.
Seattle-based realty developer Liebman will be going
to Korea and China from India and Japan, and several
European nations next month. "This is the fastest
and surest way of getting a Green Card, not only for
you but also for the family. Investors can part their
money in any business," said Phulwani.
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