Question:
How will USCIS adjudicate I-829 petitions that seek to utilize indirect job creation outside the Regional Center's area of geographic scope?
Answers:
Guidance on how USCIS will adjudicate these claims has not yet been issued, but inconsistent and confusing adjudications can be expected.
The extent of precisely which indirect jobs can be used to satisfy the statutory job creation requirement is dependent on how well the Economic Analysis demonstrates a sufficient nexus between the EB-5 money and the indirect jobs. This is a matter that should be determined up-front based on the job predictions/projections in the Economic Analysis (EA) provided with the I-924 and/or I-526. At the I-829 stage, it should be sufficient to show that the assumption and premises (conditions precedent indicated in the EA) as stated up-front have been satisfied or are on the cusp of achieving their goals. This showing should result in conditions being lifted from status.