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Is this legal? (P;ease read)

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Vincent Belew

Junior Member
Hi. Pardon my weird question.

Is it legal for the owner (in this case an American man) of a Los Angeles-based glass fabrication company to front a woman in Denmark with $500,000, so that she can take that money and invest it a new glass fabrication company in Los Angeles under the EB-5 program?

What if once the Danish woman was granted the green card, she married the American man who fronted her the money?

What if the two of them bought several properties in Los Angeles and started LLCs (one LLC for each property) to manage them?

What if the woman’s glass fabrication company took the $500,000 and put it into the corporate profit sharing program, and in turn invested it in the property that the man and woman once owned, and whose LLC continues to manage?

Are you still with me?

What if the woman’s glass fabrication company never turned a profit?

And finally, what if they filed joint tax returns?

I smell a rat.

It seems like some sort of money-laundering/tax evasion thing.

Is that legal?

What laws might they be breaking?
 


Taxing Matters

Overtaxed Member
Hi. Pardon my weird question.

Is it legal for the owner (in this case an American man) of a Los Angeles-based glass fabrication company to front a woman in Denmark with $500,000, so that she can take that money and invest it a new glass fabrication company in Los Angeles under the EB-5 program?
Yes, so long as they don't deceive the government regarding what is going on. Whether doing that would qualify her for the visa is another issue.

What if once the Danish woman was granted the green card, she married the American man who fronted her the money?
Well, she'd likely have qualified for a visa anyway just based on her marriage to a citizen, so that strikes me that making a fuss over the EB-5 visa now a moot point.

What if the two of them bought several properties in Los Angeles and started LLCs (one LLC for each property) to manage them?
That's legal.

What if the woman’s glass fabrication company took the $500,000 and put it into the corporate profit sharing program, and in turn invested it in the property that the man and woman once owned, and whose LLC continues to manage?
Nothing illegal in that just based on what you've said. Again, whether that would qualify for the EB-5 is another matter.

What if the woman’s glass fabrication company never turned a profit?
It doesn't have to make a profit.

And finally, what if they filed joint tax returns?
Perfectly legal and in most cases the smartest tax move to make.

I smell a rat.

It seems like some sort of money-laundering/tax evasion thing.
Nothing you have said suggests either tax evasion or money laundering.

Why does this upset you? How has it affected you?
 
Last edited:
Hi. Pardon my weird question.

Is it legal for the owner (in this case an American man) of a Los Angeles-based glass fabrication company to front a woman in Denmark with $500,000, so that she can take that money and invest it a new glass fabrication company in Los Angeles under the EB-5 program?
looking at the requirements, in L.A the investment should have been $1 million as it's not an economically depressed area.
"8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(5)(A). An alien investor must generally invest $1,000,000 of "capital" into a new commercial enterprise, but in economically depressed areas, or "targeted employment areas," the required amount of capital may be reduced to $500,000"
As for legality, Immigration would have denied the visa if they suspected anything, and they have seen all the attempts to circumnavigate the visa program.

What if the woman’s glass fabrication company never turned a profit?
As long as they hired 10 or more people as employees, I can't see it as a problem.
"To be eligible for an EB-5 visa, an alien must invest a certain amount of "capital" in a "commercial enterprise" to "benefit the United States economy and create full-time employment for not fewer than [ten] United States citizens or aliens lawfully admitted"
What laws might they be breaking?
They may not have the required number of handicapped parking spaces outside the factory. Who knows ;)
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
Harvey Silverglate estimates in his book "Three Felonies a Day" that the average American unwittingly commits three felonies a day because of vague laws. (go adhead and delete if this seems to spammy - I have no affiliation with the author)
My cat just used the litter box...the stink he made may be a felony.






Not spammy at all.
 

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