FORT LAUDERDALE, FL—In this Episode III, we will focus on the third group of Chinese investors: Chinese individuals. Although some Chinese individuals may invest in the United States for diversification purposes, most are seeking an EB-5 visa.

According to the US Department of State's full "Report of the Visa Office 2014," China mainland-born investors constituted 85.4% of all of the EB-5 category visas, which is a 32.4% increase from 2013. Many US developers see the EB-5 program as a great opportunity to obtain funds for their developments. However, it is important for developers to understand the complexity and potential issues of the EB-5 program.

Practical Considerations. Chinese developers commonly qualify projects for EB-5 investors by either creating a new Regional Center or joining an existing Regional Center. In general, a Regional Center is an organization that enables individual foreign investors investing in a specific project to satisfy certain of the EB-5 requirements through his or her association with the Regional Center. Foreign investors are only required to invest $500,000 if done through a Regional Center versus $1 million if the investment is not done through a Regional Center.