Federal investigators said in April they found that at least three Chinese investors who obtained green cards through the program were fugitives wanted by Beijing. And the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has opened more than a dozen civil cases since 2013 alleging fraud in projects involving around 2,000 investors and more than $1 billion in funds.
Defenders of the EB-5 program say it creates jobs and provides vital funding for projects across the United States, from massive developments in New York to hotels, restaurants and small businesses in the Midwest and on the West Coast.
“That’s the program working as it should, and more often than not, it is working as it should,” said Matthew Galati, a Philadelphia-based attorney who helps Chinese investors migrate to the U.S.
Canada’s program drew an estimated $2.4 billion through Chinese investors over the past decade, but the national government ended it in 2014, saying that it “significantly undervalued” Canadian residency and created little economic benefit. The province of Quebec has kept in place its separate program, which has drawn at least $1.9 billion from Chinese investment.
