USCIS is revising policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to clarify its policy on debt arrangements as per Policy Alert PA-2018-11.
Foreign nationals may seek an immigrant visa based on their investment in a new commercial enterprise in the United States if they meet certain related job creation requirements.
To make a qualifying investment, the immigrant investor must contribute the minimum investment amount in a manner that does not constitute a debt arrangement. Relevant precedent provides that a redemption agreement is a debt arrangement if the petitioner enters into the agreement knowing that he or she has a willing buyer at a certain time and for a certain price.
This USCIS update clarifies which redemption agreements are considered debt arrangements for EB5. More details are available at
https://www.uscis.gov/policymanual/Updates/20181030-EB5RedemptionAgreements.pdf