On November 21st, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published updated data pertaining to the number of I-526 petitions (Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur) and I-829 petitions (Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove Conditions) received, approved, denied and pending. The figures paint a picture of extraordinary growth of the EB-5 Program in Fiscal Year 2014.
FY-2014 I-526 Data Highlights:
- In total, there were 12,453 petitions pending at USCIS as of 10/1, representing over $6.2 billion dollars in foreign direct investment into the U.S.
- The total number of I-526 receipts in FY-2014 were 10,928. This represents a 72.2% increase from FY-2013 (6,346), the largestpercentage increase year-over-year since 2010-2011.
- A total of 5,115 I-526 petitions in FY-2014 were approved, with an approval rate of 80.2%. This is fairly consistent with the average I-526 approval rate between 2008 and 2014 (81.14%).
- There were a total of 1,266 I-526 petitions denied in FY-2014.
FY-2014 I-829 Data Highlights:
- The total number of I-829 receipts in FY-2014 were 2,516. This represents a 106.7% increase from FY-2013 (1,217), the largest percentage increase year-over-year since 2010-2011.
- A total of 1,603 I-829 petitions in FY-2014 were approved, with an approval rate of 90.2%. This is fairly consistent with the average I-829 approval rate between 2008 and 2014 (90.8%).
- There were a total of 178 I-829 petitions denied in FY-2014.
