Read the general immigrant investor briefing overview
An L’Île-Perrot household comparing EB-5 and Gold Card should separate transferring funds, completing review and obtaining residence. A desired move can organize questions without becoming a promised processing deadline. Financial steps settle quickly and immigration steps do not, which is why a household comparing the two routes should keep one column for what has been paid and a separate column for what has been decided. Only entries in the second column move a moving date.
Locate the EB-5 capital and job requirements on the timeline
Current capital is US$1,050,000, or US$800,000 for a qualifying targeted-employment-area or infrastructure case. Statutory adjustments begin January 1, 2027 under petition-filing-date rules. The investment needs lawful source and path, capital at risk, ten qualifying full-time jobs per investor under the applicable framework and management or policy participation. Eligible derivatives are not additional principal investors merely because they join.
Separate the Gold Card fee, vetting and gift
The nonrefundable processing charge is US$15,000 per person. After successful vetting and official instructions, the gift is US$1 million for an individual principal or US$2 million for a corporate-sponsored employee. Identify intended eligible family initially: each joining eligible spouse or unmarried child under 21 adds US$1 million and US$15,000. EB-1 or EB-2 eligibility, admissibility and visa availability remain necessary. Corporate terms include 1% annual maintenance and a 5% transfer fee with a new background check; replacement approval is not automatic.
Distinguish a residence event from a financial event
An EB-5 petition approval is not residence; conditional residence begins with immigrant-visa admission or adjustment approval. I-829 generally belongs in the 90 days before the second anniversary of that conditional residence, and filing alone does not remove conditions or guarantee repayment. Gold Card is a government gift rather than EB-5 investment capital expected to return. A payment acknowledgment does not itself establish the right to relocate.
Use a dependency checklist for the household decision
List the proposed moving date beside the official step that would permit the move, the evidence that step has actually occurred and any unresolved family issue. Keep business payment deadlines and private professional charges on separate lines. If a commercial deadline arrives before immigration is resolved, obtain advice on the actual agreement instead of assuming the government timetable will follow the contract.
A receipt confirms a payment; it does not record a decision
Confirmations are issued by whoever took the money and prove exactly that much. Neither route converts a payment into an outcome: EB-5 capital must be at risk in a new commercial enterprise with the job creation the law requires and the investor engaged at least at the policy level, while the published Gold Card process leads to lawful permanent residence through EB-1 or EB-2 as appropriately determined, subject to eligibility, admissibility and visa availability. Sums paid under those published terms move from the applicant to the U.S. government. File every confirmation, then record separately which official step each one was a precondition for and which of those steps has actually occurred.
What else is on your mind?
Does an EB-5 immigration review tell me whether an investment is good?Is the Gold Card another name for EB-5?Should I assume one Gold Card payment covers my family?Editorial source review: 2026-09-07. General preparation guidance, not an individual assessment.