DHS has proposed new increased EB-5 program fees and codified the Integrity Rules; public comments are open until December 22, 2025.

The EB-5 visa program is administered by the U.S. government agency U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). It allows foreign investors to obtain a green card by investing capital and creating jobs in the United States.

In 2022, Congress passed the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (RIA), which introduced new requirements for investors and regional centers: tighter oversight, enhanced reporting, and stricter standards for investment and job creation.

On October 23, 2025, DHS published a new proposal — the EB-5 Fee Rule — revising filing fees, restructuring payments, and codifying several elements of the RIA into regulatory form.

Why this matters for investors and regional centers

1. It will become more expensive for investors to enter EB-5

The already high price of entry (a minimum of $800,000) will increase even further: government and administrative fees will be substantial, especially for investors working through regional centers.

2. Projects will face higher operating costs

Regional centers will be required not only to pay higher fees but also to implement additional compliance processes, which will lead to:

• higher administrative costs for projects

• likely increase in service fees charged to investors

• more complexity and cost when launching new initiatives

As people say in corporate chats, “it’s definitely not going to get easier.”

3. Increased liability

The Integrity Rules establish a formal mandatory “early warning system”: any failure or delay in a project must be reported to USCIS. This increases transparency but complicates the work of regional centers and can slow down approvals.

What exactly is changing (compared to the previous framework)

Adjustment (mostly reduction) of many core fees

In the new proposed fee table:

• New fees are also introduced:

  • a technology fee — for example, an additional $95 charged with Forms I-526 / I-526E;

  • a new form: Form I-527 — “Amendment to Legacy I-526” — with a proposed fee of $8,000;

  • new “administrative” fees/payments for regional center structures, such as a bona fides/background check fee, promoter registration fees, and others.

  Codification and tightening of Integrity and Compliance requirements

  The proposal formally codifies key RIA elements, including:

  • mandatory reviews of financial flows and sources of funds;

  • enhanced reporting obligations, mandatory audits, and ongoing monitoring of regional center activities;

  • sanctions for non-compliance — including possible termination of regional center designation if Integrity Fund fees are not paid.

  New processing/administrative procedures

  DHS justifies these changes by the need to “balance the costs of administering the EB-5 program,” maintain technological infrastructure, and implement the goals of the RIA — speed up adjudications, improve reliability, and increase transparency.

  Comment period: until December 22, 2025

  Stakeholders — investors, regional centers, attorneys — may submit comments. After that, DHS will review the feedback and issue a final rule.

  Downsides and risks

  • The introduction of new fees and technology charges — $95 surcharges, new forms, registration fees — is an additional “surprise cost” for market participants.

  • For regional centers, compliance, audits, and annual payments are a real burden; some centers may not be able to meet the new requirements and will leave the market.

  • The new Form I-527 — amendments to legacy petitions — may complicate things for investors who need to update information on older cases.

  • Despite lower “headline” filing fees, the total cost of entering and maintaining an EB-5 investment may not change dramatically once you factor in compliance, audits, and potential delays.

  • Everything is still only a proposal — the final rules may differ, so there is a degree of uncertainty.