The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a Federal Register notice on March 2, 2023, announcing annual fees to be collected for the EB-5 Integrity Fund. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it will use the fund primarily to administer the EB-5 Regional Center Program. As required under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, the fee is $20,000 for regional centers with more than 20 investors and $10,000 for those with 20 or fewer investors.
The fee payment for fiscal year (FY) 2023 is due by April 1, 2023, and regional centers must pay the fee online directly at Pay.gov, a system managed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Starting in FY 2024 (October 2023), the fee will be due at the start of each fiscal year between October 1 and October 31.
In addition, DHS said, the filing fee for Form I-526E, Immigrant Petition by Regional Center Investor, increased by $1,000 on October 1, 2022, to incorporate the Integrity Fund fees.
USCIS said it will not impose late fees for payments that were due in FY 2023. The agency will start imposing a late fee in October 2023 for any payments made more than 30 days later than the due date. USCIS said it will announce the amount of the late penalty and the process for collecting it “in a future publication before we collect it or it is due.”
Per the new EB-5 law, USCIS must terminate the designation of any regional center that does not pay the fee within 90 days of the due date. Termination will not be automatic, and USCIS will provide a notice of intent to terminate and the opportunity to prove that the fee was paid in the proper amount within 90 days of the due date before sending a notice of termination.
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