Last week US Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) issued a warning to “Canadians wanting to head into the U.S. with their stash.” According to that article, attempting to cross the border with marijuana could lead to “being fined, arrested, or both.” Although both of these consequences are possible, an additional, severe consequence was not mentioned:… Read More
Immigrant intent and ties to Canada
Every alien applying for admission to the United States at a port of entry is presumed to be an intending immigrant until the alien can establish that he or she is entitled to non-immigrant status (INA 214(b)). Intending immigrants who do not possess a valid immigrant visa are inadmissible to the United States (INA 212(a)(7)(A)(i)(I)).… Read More
Summary of reasons for regional center terminations
Recently US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) began posting some of the Termination Notices for regional centers that have lost their designation. While not every Termination Notice has been published, some patterns have emerged as to the common reasons for termination. Read More
Additional tips to avoid becoming an EB-5 fraud victim
In a recent call with EB-5 stakeholders, USCIS discussed several tips for avoiding EB-5 fraud. Similar tips can be found on the SEC’s website, which includes an investor alert issued in 2013. Some of the tips, however, may be less than effective. For example, asking if the promoters are being paid will not help if the promoters do not tell the truth. Instead of relying on the word of promoters, prospective EB-5 investors may want to focus on conducting independent research and learning from SEC enforcement actions in the EB-5 context. Read More
USCIS Publishes Talking Points from November 7, 2017 EB-5 Stakeholder Engagement
USCIS held an EB-5 stakeholder engagement call on November 7, 2017 and has published its talking points from the call on its website. Highlights from the call include discussions of the Regional Center Compliance Review Program, customer service, and how to avoid being a fraud victim. Additional topics included the use of “hybrid teams” to adjudicate… Read More
Prescription medication: a hidden risk when crossing the US border
Imagine traveling to the United States by car with your prescription medication in a pill organizer. You are referred to secondary inspection while officers search your car and discover your pill organizer. Later, local police arrive, inform you that you have the right to remain silent, and issue you a notice to appear in court to defend a criminal charge. Read More
Putting the SEC’s CanAccord No Action Letter into the EB-5 Context
On January 18, 2002 the SEC issued a ‘No Action’ letter to CanAccord Capital Corporation (“CanAccord”), which was actively seeking “investments” for an immigrant investor program in Quebec, Canada. Unlike section 203(b)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the statute governing the Quebec immigrant investor program explicitly provides for reimbursement. Act Respecting Immigration to Quebec… Read More
Civics Test for Naturalization – Question 2
What does the Constitution do? Answer.
Civics Test for Naturalization – Question 1
What is the supreme law of the land? Answer.
10 Observations from Reviewing Evidence in an SEC Civil Enforcement Action
We recently reviewed over 100 pieces of documentary evidence in a civil enforcement action brought by the SEC against an attorney for taking commissions as an unregistered broker-dealer. As this action was also related to the EB-5 program, we think the following notes may be useful for attorneys practicing in this area and other industry… Read More