What does the USCIS background check involve?

The USCIS requires all potential immigrants to the United States go through background checks. Some of the checks are done by USCIS, some are done by the Department of State when you apply for a visa and some are done instantly by CBP when you arrive and seek entry into the U.S. These include searches in various criminal and national security databases, a fingerprint check and an FBI name check. Your name, date, place of birth and fingerprints will be run against a database maintained by the FBI to make sure there are no “hits”, meaning that no adverse information against you pops up based upon the various databases such as the United States and foreign law enforcement authorities, security agencies and the U.S. State Department and their various Consular Offices. For EB-5 applicants, it is not uncommon for USCIS to also check you against various treasury department databases to see if you are involved in or suspected of money laundering or other financial crimes. Above all else, the U.S. government wants to be certain that they are not letting anyone into the country that has a criminal history or poses any other threat to U.S. national security. They also want to make sure you do not have previous immigration violations and that you are not getting an immigration benefit as a result of fraud or misrepresentation. However, not every crime or immigration violation makes you inadmissible, so it is important to talk to an experienced immigration attorney to find out if EB-5 is right for you. This FAQ page or any linked web pages found here are not to be considered an offer or solicitation to sell or acquire securities or any other financial products and is not a prospectus, disclosure statement or another offering document. Any offering of securities will only be by means of a confidential private offering memorandum and conducted in accordance with applicable law. These securities have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to U.S. persons unless the securities are registered under the Act, or an exemption from the registration requirements of the Act is available. Hedging transactions involving the securities may not be conducted unless in compliance with the Act.