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Saturday, September 20, 2014

What happens WHEN (and not IF) the regional center program is NOT renewed? Just a few thousand families of EB-5 visa investors will lose their money, time and visa, that's all.

There are at least 5000 EB-5 visa investors who've pending petitions through Regional Centers who will NOT get approved before the regional center program expires in September 2015. These investors may actually have a strong case for securities fraud against regional centers and their marketers (immigration agents, lawyers, etc.) who have apparently failed to disclose the crucial facts that there is a VERY HIGH chance that regional centers will be entirely eliminated from the EB-5 visa program and that ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), which is the largest investigative law enforcement agency in the US, has strongly recommended shutting down all regional centers. EB-5 visa investors should check with an experienced securities lawyer to see if they have grounds to sue.

WHY do I say that regional centers will NOT be renewed again in 2015? What is the basis of my prediction that in 2015, regional centers will be shut out of the EB-5 visa program?

So far in 2014, USCIS has terminated 53 regional centers from the EB-5 visa program (see my previous post on this blog), and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) - HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) has clearly recommended shutting down ALL regional centers. (see link to the secret ICE memo that CLEARLY recommends shutting down ALL regional centers at http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com/EB5_ICE_fraud_memo.pdf). In addition to ICE stating in plain words that "The principal change proposed by HSI was that the Regional Center Model be allowed to sunset, as HSI maintains there are no safeguards that can be put in place that will ensure the integrity of the RC Model.", several US Senators, including Senators Grassley and Coburn, are lobbying to shut down regional centers, citing links of several regional centers to family members of Democratic politicians such as Obama's brother (El Monte), Hillary's brother (Gulf Coast), Terry McAuliffe (Gulf Coast), Harry Reid's lobbyist son (SLS Casino), etc. as it is an easy way to kill 2 birds with one stone: Appear tough on crime by actually cracking down on fraud, money laundering, improper influence etc. AND sabotage the careers of political opponents. SEC, ICE, USCIS, FBI and IRS are also lobbying behind the scenes to shut down regional centers in addition to publicly carrying out investigations and shutting down regional centers on a regular basis for fraud, money laundering, etc. The last 2 attempts tried by lobbyists and IIUSA to pass a bill to renew regional centers have not made progress in Congress, and it is not expected that any future attempts will be successful either.

Going per USCIS's past track record, it is possible that those EB-5 visa investors who have filed EB-5 visa petition through regional centers WILL see their petitions rejected if their petition is not adjudicated before the regional center program expires. It may be a good idea to directly confirm this with USCIS.

The only safe and PERMANENT option in the EB-5 visa program is the Direct Investment option, and we have been helping EB-5 visa investors obtain EB-5 visas only under the Direct Investment category since 2004. We always place our clients in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses, and do not recommend third rate franchises such as Twistee Treat, Marco's Pizza, Voodoo BBQ, etc, to our clients.

Immigrant investors who own their own businesses overseas may also migrate to the US under EB-1C visa, which offers a lot more flexibility and offers a permanent green card in less than half the time taken under EB-5 visa process, with more generous job creation criteria and no restrictions on location.

If you'd like to get your EB-5 or EB-1C visa in a safe, quick and usually profitable manner, please contact us. Our team offers a turnkey solution, and we confidently offer a 100% fee refund guarantee in case a client's petition is denied due to our fault.

Mohammed Shaikh, MBA, CFE, Licensed RE & Business Broker (CA & FL)

Skype: Mohammed.Shaikh Phone: +1 407 535 0616

Thursday, September 18, 2014

USCIS terminates 53 regional centers and hundreds of EB-5 visa investors lose their money AND their green cards due to regional centers.

Regional center owners and marketers are famous for being dishonest, and none of them will disclose to EB-5 visa investors that the USCIS has already sent Notices of Intent To Terminate to 53 Regional Centers this year! Of these, 29 were sent to Regional Centers that failed to file I-924a in 2013, and 24 were issued recently for other reasons such as securities fraud, money laundering, etc. Moreover, due to an expected 11,000 visa petitions that will be filed this fiscal year (ending in October), it is expected that EB-5 visa investors will have a minimum 2 year wait to get their temporary green card and well over 4 years to get their permanent green card.

What does this information tell us?
1. With the spate of investigations launched by USCIS, ICE, FBI, SEC and IRS, it is quite likely that in addition to the 53 regional centers already being terminated, at least an additional 40 regional centers will be terminated from the EB-5 visa program by December 2014, and that it is very likely that as per ICE's recommendation (see link at ICE recommends shutting down all regional centers in secret memo), regional centers will be entirely eliminated from the program by next September. As such, EB-5 visa investors should only choose Direct Investment Businesses in order to avoid being left in the lurch. After all, we only read about the 53 regional centers who were terminated by the USCIS, we did NOT hear about hundreds of EB-5 visa investors who lost their money AND their green cards because they made the mistake of choosing a regional center instead of opting for a Genuine Direct Investment Business. As a matter of fact, immigrant investors should always choose Genuine Direct Investments, irrespective of whether they choose the EB-5 or EB-1C route to get their green card.

Some EB-5 visa investors may ask: WHY should an immigrant investor choose Genuine Direct Investments as opposed to Regional Centers?
My dad taught me that there are only 3 types of people in this world: a) Those who learn from the experience and mistakes of others, b) Those who learn from their own mistakes and experience, c) Those who never learn. There is a REASON that ICE clearly recommended shutting down ALL regional centers due to the rampant fraud and conflict of interest seen in them. There is a REASON that CEO's and CFO's of regional centers refuse to give guarantees of freedom from fraud and conflict of interest. Fact is, not only do EB-5 visa petitions get approved a lot sooner with Direct Investment Businesses, they also usually yield solid operating income, have easy exit strategies and usually yield capital gains. It is IMPOSSIBLE to come across a regional center that offers these features. Another reason to choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses is that they offer the ability to constantly maintain the 10 new jobs profitably, while regional centers are constantly sweating about HOW to even create and document 10 jobs per investor?

Investors can get green card quickly under EB-1C visa category too, especially if they've been owning and operating their own business overseas for at least a year. Our team helps and advises investors in migrating to the US and getting green card under EB-1C and EB-5 category. The required investment amount ranges from minimum $350,000 for EB-1C to $500,000 or more for EB-5, and we offer a GUARANTEE OF A FULL FEE REFUND in case our client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence. Our competitors usually NEVER guarantee a full fee refund in case they err.

For further details, please contact Mohammed Shaikh, Licensed RE Broker  (CA & FL) at +1 407 535 0616 or visit us online at Smart Business Broker - Business Immigration Specialists!

#GreenCard #EB-5 #EB-1

Our website is http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com 

Thursday, September 4, 2014

SEC continues prosecuting Regional Centers for fraud. Genuine Direct Investments are the ONLY safe choice for immigration under EB-1C (with or without L1A visa) or EB-5 visa categories.

The SEC charged Immigration Attorneys with defrauding EB-5 visa investors and siphoning off their funds (See article at http://www.sec.gov/News/PressRelease/Detail/PressRelease/1370542843452)

In yet another case of fraud against EB-5 visa investors, the SEC announced charges against lawyers for defrauding EB-5 visa investors. It is also expected that another L.A. based lawyer who is affiliated with a casino may also face similar charges for money laundering and securities fraud.

Senators, ICE (See link to the secret ICE memo recommending that ALL regional centers should be shut down to prevent fraud at http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com/EB5_ICE_fraud_memo.pdf) and SEC are warning EB-5 visa investors about regional centers. In contrast, it is almost impossible to be defrauded when it comes to Genuine Direct Investments, and the following reasons demonstrate the undeniable advantages Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer over regional centers.

As a matter of fact, in EVERY single objective comparison, Genuine Direct Investment Businesses turn out to be the better choice for EB-5 visa investors.

Here are some of the critical reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses:

EB-5 visa investors will not come across even ONE regional center whose CEO and CFO can honestly certify that they disclose ALL material facts to their investors and don't engage in fraud or conflict of interest. In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Twistee Treats or Voodoo or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses will usually NEVER experience capital loss. Most regional centers even fail to disclose that it takes over 4 years to get a permanent green card under EB-5 visa category, and it takes only 1-2 years to do so under EB-1C category, with no location restrictions and easier job creation standards.

EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers experience TERRIBLE exit strategies.

Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. Remember, Real Estate Brokers owe a fiduciary duty to their EB-5 visa investor clients, regional centers don't.

EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains upon exit if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes about twice as long for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a significantly higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a significantly lower chance of getting their green card.

Keeping the above facts in mind, EB-5 visa investors can only come to a single conclusion: The ONLY safe, fast and usually profitable way to get an EB-5 visa is through investment in a GENUINE Direct Investment Business.

If you are an investor interested in applying for your EB-5 or EB-1C visa, please hire our team. You'll be glad you did, as we offer a turnkey solution with complete peace of mind. We offer 2 guarantees to our clients: a) Guarantee of ZERO FRAUD and Conflict of Interest, b) Guarantee of FULL FEE REFUND in case of a client being denied due to our fault.

Yours truly
Mohammed Shaikh, MBA, CFE, Licensed RE Broker (CA & FL)
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com Phone: +1 407 535 0616