February 2013

We’re excited to annouce that we’ve expanded our Business Immigration & Compliance Practice with the addition of attorneys Jennifer A. Hermansky and Nataliya Rymer. Jennifer and Nataliya’s experience complements our business immigration team and adds to our global platform that offers clients a wide variety of experience in various business compliance and immigration issues.
Continue Reading Greenberg Traurig Welcomes Jennifer Hermansky and Nataliya Rymer

As we reported in December, the increased demand in the EB-5 immigrant investor visa category will most likely result in visa retrogression for Chinese born EB-5 investors in the Spring of 2013. Some have reported that this type of retrogression will mean that EB-5 applications for Chinese investors will come to a standstill. This is not only false, but legally inaccurate. I-526 applications for Chinese nationals will still be processed by the USCIS. They will be assigned a priority date, and will need to wait until that priority is available before actually obtaining the conditional residence.
Continue Reading The Myths of Retrogression of the Visa Numbers in the EB-5 Program

I am often asked what questions a client or prospective client should undertake to ensure that his or her attorney is approaching the private placement memorandum (PPM) drafting process with care and diligence. While not all circumstances are similar, I have outlined below some important considerations.
Continue Reading EB-5 Program Securities Offerings: Considerations for the Drafting Process

Often in my practice, I am approached by clients who have misunderstandings about the EB-5 securities offering process. This article is meant to debunk a few of the common EB-5 myths related to the nature and scope of private placement memoranda (PPM) and related due diligence.
Continue Reading EB-5 Program Securities Offerings: Preparing Appropriate Disclosure Documents

When traveling to the United States, foreign nationals submit biographic information to determine if they are eligible to travel to the United States. The biographic information along with other information is submitted through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). The ESTA is an automated system that determines the eligibility of visitors to travel to the U.S. As individuals answers questions online, they will need to respond to the following question: “Have you ever been denied a U.S. visa or entry into the U.S. or had a U.S. visa canceled?”
Continue Reading The Hidden Meaning Behind the Words: ‘Have You Ever Been Denied a U.S. Visa or Entry into the U.S., or Had a U.S. Visa Canceled?’

The city of Miami aims to set up an EB-5 program to raise foreign cash for a range of city businesses and developments. Douglas Hanks of The Miami Herald discusses the details in his article, “Green cards for sale at a South Beach hotel: Competition is on for EB5 investment visas.” Our colleague Laura Reiff comments on the city’s debut EB5 venture, the Panorama – a planned 85-story apartment tower in downtown Miami.

Continue Reading EB-5 Program’s Impact in the Miami Area