IN THIS GUIDE · Document a house sale and a pension lump sum as lawful EB-5 capital
Start with the EB-5 eligibility and application overview
Prove the source of both funds, not just their existence
USCIS requires evidence that the capital was obtained through lawful means, and it examines the path from origin to the new commercial enterprise. For the house, that means the original purchase deed, the mortgage records and discharge, the listing and sale agreement, the closing statement showing net proceeds and the deposit into the retiree’s account. For the pension, it means the plan membership record, the statement of accrued value, the election of the transfer value, the plan administrator’s payment confirmation and the receiving account statement. Tax withheld on the lump sum should be shown so the net figure reconciles. A useful source-of-funds plan labels every transfer by its origin document and preserves translations where needed. That approach exposes missing links early, before the investor has committed money to a project that cannot be explained cleanly.
Confirm the amount, the area and the job count
Under the Reform and Integrity Act the standard minimum is US$1,050,000, reduced to US$800,000 for a targeted employment area or an infrastructure project, with statutory adjustment beginning January 1, 2027; verify the figure at filing. The regional center must document that the project location qualifies as a targeted employment area at the relevant time. Each investor’s capital must be credited with creating at least ten full-time positions for qualifying U.S. workers, which for regional-center projects may include indirect jobs shown through an accepted economic methodology. The retiree does not count herself or her family among the ten.
Understand what at risk and engaged mean for a retiree
Capital is at risk when it is placed in the enterprise with a chance of gain and loss; a guaranteed return or a redemption right defeats the requirement. Regional-center offering documents should be read for any promise of repayment on a fixed date. The investor must also be engaged in the enterprise, which for a limited-partner investor is satisfied by the policy-making rights the partnership agreement gives limited partners. Residence obtained through EB-5 is conditional for two years; Form I-829 is filed in the ninety days before the second anniversary to remove conditions on proof that the investment was sustained and the jobs created.
What to ask the plan administrator and the closing notary
Ask the pension administrator for a letter stating the member’s service dates, the commuted value calculation and the payment date, because it converts a bare bank credit into a traced source. Ask whether any portion must remain locked in a registered vehicle, since locked-in funds cannot be invested. Ask the notary for the adjusted statement of the house sale, showing the price, adjustments, commissions and net proceeds, and for a copy of the discharged mortgage. Ask the regional center for its current designation, the project’s job-creation report and the exit terms, and check the fee the investor pays the center separately from the investment.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.