Earlier this week, Immigration Investor Program Office (IPO) published updated processing volume for the I-526 and I-829 petitions through Q4 of Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, (July-September). Below are selected data points extracted from the reports:
I-526 (Read Full Report, Members-only)
- In Q4 2016 there was a significant increase in I-526 filings with over 5,ooo receipts, representing a increase of 260% from the previous quarter. However, filing volume was lower than the same time period in 2015.
- There were over 2,800 I-526 petitions approved in Q4 – the second highest single-quarter total in EB-5 history. Approvals accounted for over $1.4 billion in EB-5 FDI.
- I-526 approval rate in Q4 increased to over 90%, a significant increase from the first three quarters of the Fiscal Year.
- As of Q4 there are a total of 20,804 pending I-526 petitions, a increase of 7% from the last quarter and almost triple the total in 2013.
I-829 (Read Full Report, Members-only)
- In Q4 2016 there were 903 I-829 filings, a 81% increase in a year over year comparison.
- I-829 approvals declined by 28% from the previous quarter, continuing the decline in I-829 approvals since Q1 of this fiscal year.
- USCIS didn’t release the number of I-829 denials in Q4. So we are unable to calculate the approval rate for Q4. However, based on the data in the first three quarters, the average I-829 approval rate in FY2016 is likely to be over 90%.
- There are currently over 6,300 pending I-829 petitions a 14% increase from the last quarter and an over 50% increase from the same time last year.
