How to Evaluate an EB-5 Regional Center's Track Record

7 days ago

4 min read

Updated: 19 hours ago

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Short answer: An EB-5 regional center's track record should be evaluated through specific, dated and verifiable facts, rather than broad statements such as “successful projects” or “capital repaid.”

Investors should distinguish among project approvals, investor immigration approvals, project-level loan repayments and principal actually returned to investors.

Each measures a different stage of the EB-5 lifecycle.

An EB-5 Regional Center Track Record Is More Than One Number

Terms such as “100% approval rate” or “100% repayment” may sound straightforward, but their meaning depends on what is actually being measured.

Metric	What It Tells You
Project approval	USCIS approved the applicable project filing
I-526 / I-526E approval	An individual investor petition was approved
I-829 approval	The conditions on an investor's permanent residence were removed
JCE-to-NCE repayment	The project borrower repaid the EB-5 investment fund
Investor principal repayment	Capital was actually distributed to an eligible investor

These outcomes should not be combined into a single general “success rate.”

USCIS designation of a regional center also does not represent government endorsement of the investments offered through that regional center. The SEC and USCIS investor alert encourages investors to conduct independent due diligence.

I-526E approval records illustrating verifiable immigration approvals in an EB-5 regional center track record

Speak With an EB-5 Specialist

Speak with an iCross × ARCFE EB-5 specialist to discuss your immigration goals, timeline, and available investment opportunities.

Eight Questions Investors Should Ask

1. How Many Projects Has the Regional Center Sponsored?

Ask how many projects have actually raised EB-5 capital, and distinguish between completed projects, active projects and offerings that are still raising funds.

A project still under construction should not be evaluated in the same way as one that has already reached maturity.

2. What Does the Approval Rate Measure?

Investors should understand whether an approval statistic refers to project approvals, I-526/I-526E approvals or I-829 approvals.

Under the current Regional Center Program, a designated regional center files Form I-956F for a specific capital investment project. Once the I-956F has been filed, investors may file Form I-526E based on that project.

The two forms serve different purposes and should not be treated as the same type of approval. See the USCIS Form I-956F Instructions.

3. How Many Investors Have Received Immigration Approvals?

I-526/I-526E and I-829 approvals represent different stages of the immigration process.

A meaningful track record should identify which petition type is being reported and the period covered.

4. How Many Projects Have Reached the Repayment Stage?

A project that is still within its contractual investment term has not necessarily failed to repay.

Investors should distinguish between projects that are not yet due for repayment and projects that have already reached maturity.

5. Was Capital Returned to the NCE or to Investors?

These are different events.

A borrower may repay the EB-5 fund while individual investors have not yet received a principal distribution.

Investors should therefore ask how much capital was actually distributed to eligible investors.

6. Has Any Investor Experienced a Realized Loss of Principal?

The answer should define both the population being reviewed and the reporting date.

A useful statement should make clear which projects and investors are included and what is meant by a “realized loss.”

7. What Evidence Supports the Track Record?

Useful evidence may include USCIS notices, project records, repayment notices, redacted bank confirmations and closing documents.

The figure should be specific enough for investors to understand what it covers and how it was calculated.

8. How Does the Regional Center Monitor Active Projects?

A regional center's track record also includes how it manages projects that are still active.

Investors should understand how the regional center monitors construction progress, budgets, capital deployment, job creation, loan compliance and material project developments.

ARCFE Track Record Snapshot

As of September 2026, ARCFE publicly reports that it has raised and managed EB-5 capital for 20 projects, with a 100% project approval rate.

Completed ARCFE-sponsored projects have repaid more than $271 million in EB-5 loans. See About ARCFE.

At the investor level, ARCFE reported that cumulative principal repayments to eligible investors had reached $118.8 million as of September 2026.

ARCFE also reported that eligible investors whose investments had reached maturity and satisfied the applicable repayment conditions had received their principal in full, while the remaining investments were still within their contractual terms. No investor principal loss had been recorded across ARCFE-sponsored EB-5 projects as of that reporting date.

These figures measure different parts of ARCFE's historical record and should be read separately.

That is also why ARCFE distinguishes between EB-5 loans repaid by projects and principal actually distributed to investors.

What a Useful Track Record Should Show

A useful EB-5 track record should make four things easy to identify:

What happened?
Which projects and investors are included?
When did it happen?
What evidence supports the claim?

Specific definitions and reporting dates make historical performance easier to understand, compare and verify.

For a broader project-level due diligence framework, see Beyond the Pitch Deck: How Serious EB-5 Investors Should Evaluate a Project.

USCIS designation or project approval does not constitute government endorsement of an investment. Past performance does not guarantee future results. EB-5 investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax or investment advice.

Recent ARCFE EB-5 Principal Repayment Highlights

Explore ARCFE’s latest EB-5 principal repayment milestones across pre-RIA and post-RIA projects. Click any image below to read the full project update.