IN THIS GUIDE · Keeping a child's derivative eligibility in view while an EB-5 case is built
Start with the EB-5 eligibility and application overview
Put the capital figure and the job requirement on the same page
Two numbers frame every EB-5 conversation. Capital must be US$1,050,000, or US$800,000 where the investment qualifies as targeted employment area or infrastructure investment, as those amounts stand on 7 September 2026; statutory adjustments begin in 2027, so any filing planned for later needs a fresh check. Alongside the money sits the requirement for at least ten qualifying full-time jobs, counted by methods that differ depending on whether the structure is standalone or regional-center. Neither number moves because a child is aging. Put both numbers in front of the household at the first meeting and keep them there. Capital and job creation are requirements of the classification and do not soften because a child is approaching an age limit, and a family that understands this stops looking for a faster route and starts looking for a workable one. Where a filing is planned for a later year, re-check the applicable capital figure then rather than carrying today's forward.
Write down the child's facts before anyone opines on them
Age protection under the relevant statute is fact-specific and cannot be summarised into a promise. What counsel needs is precise: the child's date of birth, marital status, any prior immigrant petitions filed on the family's behalf, and every U.S. status the child has held. Add the parents' countries of birth, because chargeability usually follows birth rather than residence or passport. With those facts on paper, an adviser can analyse the child's position instead of speculating about it. Give counsel a single sheet with the child's date of birth, marital status, every prior immigrant petition filed for the family, and each United States status the child has held, together with both parents' countries of birth. Age protection under the relevant statute is fact-specific and cannot be reduced to a promise, and an adviser handed those facts can analyse the position rather than speculate about it.
Treat visa availability as part of the child's question
The route runs from the investor petition to either an immigrant visa abroad or adjustment of status where the applicant is eligible, and that second step depends on visa availability for the family's chargeability. A family with a child near the age limit therefore watches two clocks at once: the child's, and the queue's. Ask counsel to explain how the Visa Bulletin interacts with the child's analysis, and to say plainly which parts remain outside anyone's control. Diarise the two clocks together in one document, with the child's dates on one line and the queue on another. Ask counsel to explain how visa availability interacts with the child's analysis and to say plainly which parts sit outside anyone's control. A family watching only the birthday is surprised by a queue movement, and a family watching only the queue is surprised by the birthday.
Decide what happens if the child ages out anyway
Planning that assumes the best outcome leaves a family stranded when it does not arrive. Discuss, in advance, what the household would do if the child could not immigrate as a derivative: whether a separate route would be explored, whether university plans in either country change, and whether the capital commitment still makes sense on its own terms. Capital placed at risk is not refundable on request, so this conversation belongs before subscription documents are signed. Hypothetical example: a household plans around a child entering the final year of secondary school. Decide now what happens if that child cannot immigrate as a derivative: whether a separate route would be explored, how university plans change in either country, and whether the capital commitment still makes sense on its own terms. Capital placed at risk is not refundable on request, so this conversation belongs before subscription documents are signed.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.