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Here’s a look at a 3 immigrant investor programs from around the world that are similar to the U.S. EB-5 Program. See how they compare and discover why the EB-5 Program is still top dog.
Here we’ll show the fees, requirements, restrictions, and benefits of each program to illustrate the advantages and disadvantages. We’ve marked what we believe to be the most advantageous qualities in bold blue text below.
| Canada (Québec) | United Kingdom | Australia | United States | |
| PROGRAM | Investor Program | Investor Visa (Tier 1) | Investor Visa | EB-5 Program |
| MINIMUM INVESTMENT AMOUNT | C$1,200,000 | £2,000,000 | AUD 1,500,000 | $500,000 |
| MINIMUM INVESTMENT AMOUNT USD | ~$900,000 | ~$2,500,000 | ~$1,000,000 | $500,000 |
| FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS | Legally acquired net assets of at least C$2,000,000 | Access to and control of £2 million in investment funds and must have opened an account at a UK regulated bank to use these funds | Must have held your AUD 1.5 million investment continuously for 4 years and have a genuine commitment to continue a business or investment activity in Australia | Funds can come from a variety of lawful sources such as income, inheritance, loan, or gift |
| INVESTMENT REQUIREMENTS | Passive Investment | Funds must be held in a regulated financial institution and must be free to spend in the UK | Must have lived in Australia as provisional visa holder for 2 years in the 4 years immediately before submitting the application | Must invest in a job-creating project and can be through the Direct EB-5 Program or the Regional Center Program |
| MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS | Must sign an investment agreement with an authorized financial intermediary and invest with Investissement Québec – Immigrants Investisseurs Inc. | N/A | N/A | The two different programs allow investors to decide if they want to do manage the investment’s daily operations. They can be a policy-maker instead. |
| RESIDENTIAL REQUIREMENTS | Must intend to settle in Québec | Must reside in the UK 50% of the year | Investors can travel in and out of Australia as many times as they want for 5 years from the date the visa was granted | Can travel freely, but must be able to prove they’ve maintained U.S. residency |
| RESTRICTIONS | On age, education, and language. Must also have two years of management experience within the last five years. No interest on investment | On age, jobs and job training. Also, foreign nationals from particular countries are ineligible. | On business, health and character. Also, applicants must be holders of Subclass 162 (Investor (Provisional) and must sign Australian Values Statement | Some EB-5 projects require investors to be accredited investors (net worth and income requirements) |
| LENGTH OF INVESTMENT | Five years | Can stay in the UK 4 years 3 months | Investment must be sustained for about 2 years in order to be eligible to apply to remove the conditions on an investor’s permanent residency status | From the time when a visa becomes available, investors have roughly two years to remove the conditions on their visa |
| MAJOR BENEFITS | Include risk free passive investment, free healthcare, free education | Includes free primary and secondary education for children, reduced tuition fees, eligibility for UK citizenship after 5 years, UK citizens can travel to over 100 countries. Investors can also expedite permanent residency process by a few years by investing more money. | Benefits include indefinite stay in Australia, eligibility for citizenship, work and study opportunities, enrollment in the public healthcare scheme, unlimited travel for 5 years | Live, work and study anywhere in the U.S., easy international travel, qualify for in-state college tuition, qualify for homestead exemptions to save on taxes, qualify for social security and Medicare, eligible for citizenship after 5 years |
Dollar for dollar the U.S. EB-5 Program is still the at the top. It’s not just the low investment fee, the passive investment option, the freedom to live, work, travel, and study anywhere that put it on top, but the lack of restrictions that the other programs have, make it popular.
We have not included processing times because it varies depending on the investor’s country of origin.
Ready to get started investing in EB-5? Looking for more information? Take our investor evaluation below or send us a message.
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