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APPLICATION ANSWERS · EB-5 FIELD GUIDE

Is the required minimum capital amount the entire EB-5 budget for a St. Catharines applicant?

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THE DIRECT ANSWER

No. Investment capital should be shown separately from project or administrative charges, government filing fees, legal work, document preparation, and later immigration stages. The actual agreements and current fee schedules should be reviewed before any commitment is made.

Trace what each specific payment actually covers

Ask whether a payment is refundable and what happens if the project or the immigration case changes materially. Keep family-related expenses and independent financial diligence visible as separate line items, since an advertised package price can omit material terms while a quoted return does not describe the full financial exposure.

The standard amount is one million and fifty thousand United States dollars, reduced to eight hundred thousand for an enterprise in a targeted employment area or for an infrastructure project, with statutory adjustment beginning on the first of January, 2027. A queue stretches spending across years rather than months: passports, police certificates, and medical examinations expire and may need repeating, translations may need updating, and each family member carries their own processing charges at the visa stage.