September 30, 2026 is a date that matters significantly to anyone who is considering an EB-5 investment but has not yet committed. It is the deadline by which an investor must file their initial petition with USCIS in order to qualify for grandfathering protections under the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act. After that date, those protections are no longer available to new investors.
At CanAm, we have been speaking with prospective investors about this deadline for more than a year. The message we want to share clearly is this: the deadline is real, the benefits are meaningful, and five months is enough time to act, but not enough time to delay.
What Grandfathering Means
When Congress passed the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act (RIA) in March 2022, it updated the rules governing the EB-5 program, including raising the minimum investment amounts and introducing new visa allocation rules. At the same time, it established a grandfathering provision: a protection for investors who file their petitions before the program’s current authorization expires on September 30, 2027.
In plain terms, grandfathering means that investors who act before September 30, 2026 can lock in the rules that exist today, even if Congress changes them later. Specifically, an investor who files by that date secures two significant protections:
- The lower investment threshold: the minimum investment in a Targeted Employment Area (a rural area or high-unemployment zone designated for EB-5 investment) is currently $800,000. After the deadline, that minimum is expected to rise to $1,050,000, a difference of $250,000.
- Priority date preservation: an investor’s priority date is the date their petition is filed with USCIS, and it determines their place in the visa queue. If Congress fails to reauthorize the Regional Center Program after 2027, or reauthorizes it with changes to how visas are allocated, a grandfathered investor keeps their original priority date and their place in line. For investors from countries with visa backlogs, including India and China, this protection is particularly important.
Together, these two protections represent a meaningful financial and procedural advantage over investing after the deadline has passed.
Why the Timeline Is Tighter Than It Appears
Five months sounds like a reasonable runway. In practice, the steps required to file an EB-5 petition take time, and some of them cannot be rushed.
Source of funds documentation is typically the most time-consuming part of the process. USCIS requires investors to demonstrate the lawful origin of their investment capital, which may involve gathering financial records, tax filings, bank statements, and supporting documentation across multiple years and jurisdictions. Depending on the complexity of an investor’s financial history, this preparation can take several weeks to several months.
Selecting a project, completing subscription documents, and working with an immigration attorney to prepare the petition filing also take time. For an investor starting the process today, the realistic window to file before September 30 is narrowing.
Investors who are seriously considering EB-5 should begin the process now. Waiting until summer significantly increases the risk of missing the deadline.
What This Means for Investors from High-Demand Countries
For investors from countries currently experiencing EB-5 visa retrogression, which occurs when demand for visas from a particular country exceeds the annual per-country limit, the priority date protection that comes with grandfathering carries additional weight.
The EB-5 visa backlog means that investors from high-demand countries may wait years between petition approval and the availability of a visa number that allows them to move forward to the next stage of the green card process. An investor’s priority date, established when the petition is filed, determines their place in that queue. If the program is reauthorized after 2027 with new or different allocation rules, a grandfathered investor’s place in line is protected. An investor who files after September 30, 2026 does not have that protection.
For families weighing the long-term value of EB-5 as a path to U.S. permanent residency, this distinction is worth understanding carefully before the deadline passes.
How CanAm Can Help
CanAm has guided more than 8,000 investors through the EB-5 process over more than 20 years. We have helped investors navigate program changes, visa backlogs, and shifting regulatory requirements across multiple economic cycles. The September 30 deadline is one of the most significant near-term milestones the program has seen in years, and our team is prepared to help prospective investors understand whether grandfathering applies to their situation and what steps are needed to meet the deadline.
Prospective investors who are ready to begin the process, or who simply want to understand what the deadline means for their specific circumstances, are encouraged to contact us now. Our team can walk through project options, investment requirements, and the documentation process in detail.
The deadline is September 30. The time to start is today.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
CanAm Enterprises has raised more than $4 billion in EB-5 capital, repaid more than $2.5 billion to investors, and achieved more than 5,900 I-526 petition approvals and more than 3,000 I-829 petition approvals. With 11 regional centers covering more than 30 U.S. states, we offer a range of project options across sectors including real estate, life sciences, clean energy, and digital infrastructure.
To speak with a member of our team about the September 30 grandfathering deadline and whether it applies to your situation, contact us at (212) 668-0690 or info@canamenterprises.com. Visit www.canamenterprises.com to learn more about our current EB-5 offerings.
