EB-5 in 2026: what investors need to know
Thinking about EB-5 and a South Florida move? Here's the 2026 picture in plain English. Education only, no sales pitch.
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What EB-5 actually is, in one honest page.
EB-5 is a US immigration program run by USCIS. The idea is simple to state. You invest in a job-creating US enterprise, that enterprise creates at least 10 full-time US jobs, and you and your immediate family gain a path to a green card.
Simple to state. Not simple to do. The rules run deep, the paperwork runs deeper, and the stakes are your family's future. So let me be clear about what this page is before you read another word.
This page is education. It is not an offer or solicitation of securities, and it is not advice of any kind. I'm Marlo, a licensed Florida real estate agent. I don't sell EB-5 investments, I don't name projects, and I don't recommend offerings. Ever. My part of the story starts later, when your family needs a home in South Florida.
Why write about EB-5 at all, then? Because families researching the visa also research the move. They want one honest explainer that doesn't end in a pitch. Here it is.
So what does EB-5 ask of you? Two big things: a qualifying investment and proof that your money comes from lawful sources. The investment amount depends on where the enterprise sits.
TEA vs standard: the numbers, side by side.
| Category | Minimum investment | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Targeted Employment Area (TEA) | $800,000 as of July 2026 | Rural areas or areas with high unemployment, as USCIS defines them. |
| Standard (non-TEA) | $1,050,000 as of July 2026 | Everywhere else. Same program, higher minimum. |
Educational comparison only. Which category fits any given enterprise is a question for your immigration attorney and a registered broker-dealer, never for a realtor.
Notice what this table doesn't say. No projects. No offerings. No predictions about money coming back. That's on purpose, and it's permanent.
Why everyone is talking about September 30, 2026.
You'll see urgency everywhere in EB-5 marketing right now. Let's replace the urgency with the sourced facts, because the facts are interesting enough on their own.
Here's the one that matters most: File I-526E by September 30, 2026 to be grandfathered under current rules, per the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (USCIS). Grandfathered means your petition proceeds under the rules in place when you filed, even as the program changes around you.
Two more facts complete the picture, both as of July 2026. First, Congress has authorized the regional center program through September 2027, so the program itself is not ending in 2026. Second, minimum investment amounts are expected to rise in January 2027, to roughly $900,000 for TEA and $1.2 million standard.
Put those three together and the timing story tells itself. Families who file I-526E before September 30, 2026 lock in today's rules. Families who wait likely face higher minimums. That's not a sales pitch. That's the calendar, straight from the statute.
Should your family rush? I have no idea, and it's not my call. Timing an immigration petition is a legal strategy question for your immigration attorney. What I can tell you is that the families I've helped settle here started their research early and never regretted it.
The process ideas worth understanding first.
Your attorney will map your exact path. These five concepts, all as of July 2026, come up in nearly every EB-5 conversation, so learn them early.
- Source of funds. You must document where every invested dollar came from, lawfully. Salary, business sale, property sale, gift, inheritance. Each source needs a paper trail. Families tell me this is the most work of the whole process.
- The 10-jobs requirement. The enterprise you invest in must create at least 10 full-time jobs for US workers. No jobs, no green card. This single rule explains most of how EB-5 works.
- Concurrent filing and the EAD. Applicants already in the US in valid status can often file for adjustment of status at the same time as the I-526E. That can unlock a work permit, the EAD, while the petition waits in line.
- The I-829. The first green card is conditional. Near the end of the two-year conditional period, you file I-829 to remove conditions by showing the jobs actually happened.
- The wait. Families typically reach the conditional green card in about 18 to 30 months, as of July 2026. Plan your life, your schooling, and yes, your housing around a timeline, not a date.
Can you buy a house with EB-5? No. And here's why that's fine.
This is the question that brings more families to this page than any other, so let's settle it plainly.
Buying your own home does not count as an EB-5 investment. Not a mansion in Weston, not a condo on the beach, not a ranch with horses. Why not? Remember the 10-jobs requirement. Your personal residence doesn't create 10 full-time US jobs, so it can't qualify as the investment. USCIS wants capital flowing into job-creating enterprises, not into your driveway.
So the money splits into two completely separate buckets. Bucket one is the EB-5 investment: $800,000 or $1,050,000 as of July 2026, placed in a job-creating enterprise your attorney and a registered broker-dealer help you evaluate. Bucket two is your home: whatever you choose to spend on the place your kids grow up.
Families who miss this distinction get their budgets tangled. Families who plan both buckets from day one glide. Your tax advisor will thank you, your attorney will thank you, and honestly, so will I, because home shopping goes better when the housing budget is its own clean number.
And that second bucket? That's where I come in. The investment half of your EB-5 journey belongs to your licensed professionals. The home half belongs to your family, and helping families with that half is my entire job. Two buckets, two teams, one move.
Four professionals, four jobs. Nobody wears two hats.
Every smooth EB-5 move I've watched had the same shape: four licensed professionals, each staying in their lane. Here's the lineup.
- An immigration attorney. Your quarterback. Strategy, eligibility, the I-526E, concurrent filing, the I-829 down the road. Nothing about your petition happens without this person.
- A registered broker-dealer. The investment side of EB-5 involves securities, and securities belong with registered professionals. They handle offering materials, suitability, and the questions I will never touch.
- A tax advisor. US tax residency changes how your worldwide income gets treated. Smart families do their tax planning before they land, not after.
- A local realtor. That's me. Neighborhoods, school zones, HOA realities, offers, inspections, closing. The home, start to finish.
Notice what's missing from my lane. I don't pick projects. I don't review offerings. I don't opine on where your investment capital should go. If you ask me, I'll smile and hand you back to your attorney and broker-dealer, because that's what keeping families safe looks like.
The best question a client ever asked me.
A father of three once asked me, "Marlo, which EB-5 project should we choose?" I told him the truth: the moment a realtor answers that question, you should run.
He laughed. Then he hired me anyway, for the part I'm actually licensed to do. His attorney handled the petition. A registered broker-dealer handled the investment questions. A tax advisor got their planning done before the family landed.
And me? I found them a home with a yard big enough for two dogs and a trampoline. Everyone did their one job. That's the whole playbook.
Where EB-5 families actually settle in South Florida.
Once the petitions are moving, the real question becomes wonderfully ordinary: where will we live?
In my corner of Broward County, one answer comes up again and again: Weston. It's a master-planned city of villages with A-rated schools, and it has a large Venezuelan, Colombian, and Brazilian community. That's a neutral fact about the city, and it means everyday life there runs comfortably in English and Spanish, from the pediatrician to the bakery.
Weston isn't the only answer, of course. Some families want acreage, some want a townhome near the beach, some want new construction. My area guides break down the neighborhoods one by one, and I'll happily tour you through all of them, in person or over video before you even land.
The move itself has its own moving parts: shipping, schools, driver's licenses, bank accounts, the first grocery run. I built my relocation page for exactly that checklist. And when you're ready to understand how I work as your buyer's agent, from search to keys, that lives on my buyers page.
One promise about pace: your timeline drives everything. Some families buy before the EAD arrives. Some rent first and buy after the conditional green card. Both paths work, and I've walked both with real families. We go at your speed.
¿Prefieres leer esto en español?
Esta guía también existe en español. Encuentra la versión condensada en mi página de visa EB-5 en español, con las mismas reglas, las mismas fechas y el mismo enfoque educativo.
And if your family flips between both languages mid-sentence, welcome. So do half my clients. Text me in whichever language the question arrives in, and I'll answer the same way.
Important disclaimer. Please read this part.
This page is educational content only. Nothing here is legal, tax, immigration, or investment advice, and nothing here is an offer or solicitation of securities.
Marlo Cabanillas is a licensed Florida real estate agent. She is not a broker-dealer, not an investment adviser, and not an immigration attorney. She does not recommend, endorse, or sell any EB-5 project, regional center, or offering.
All figures, dates, and program details on this page are as of July 2026 and can change. Before making any immigration or investment decision, consult licensed professionals: an immigration attorney, a registered broker-dealer, and a tax advisor.
EB-5 questions families actually ask.
What are the disadvantages of EB-5?
Three honest ones. First, your capital sits at risk: EB-5 requires a true investment, and no one can promise you get it back. Second, timelines run long. Many families wait 18 to 30 months for the conditional green card, as of July 2026, and the full journey takes years. Third, the documentation burden is heavy, especially proving the lawful source of your funds. An immigration attorney and a registered broker-dealer walk you through those parts. I only handle the home search. This is education, not advice.
How hard is it to get an EB-5 visa?
The program is demanding rather than mysterious. You need the qualifying investment amount, proof of a lawful source of funds, an investment that creates at least 10 full-time US jobs, and patience for USCIS processing. Families who build the right team early, meaning an immigration attorney, a registered broker-dealer, and a tax advisor, tend to move through it with fewer surprises. No professional can promise an approval. Talk to an immigration attorney about your specific case.
How much money do you need for EB-5?
As of July 2026, the minimum investment is $800,000 in a Targeted Employment Area (TEA) or $1,050,000 outside one. Filing fees, legal fees, and administrative costs come on top of that. Your own home is a separate budget entirely, because a personal home purchase does not count toward the EB-5 investment. Confirm current figures with an immigration attorney, since minimums are expected to rise in January 2027.
Is the EB-5 program ending in 2026?
No. As of July 2026, Congress has authorized the regional center program through September 2027 under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022. What changes is pricing and grandfathering: File I-526E by September 30, 2026 to be grandfathered under current rules, per the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (USCIS), and minimums are expected to rise to roughly $900,000 TEA and $1.2 million standard in January 2027. Verify dates with USCIS and your immigration attorney.
Planning the move that comes after the visa?
I help EB-5 families find their South Florida home, in English o en español. Text me about the home search. That's my part, and I love it.