CanAm’s President and CEO, Tom Rosenfeld, published the below letter to investors and industry professionals correcting USCIS’ errors in reporting CanAm’s track record.
"I write to you today in regards to reports published by the USCIS purporting to list the number of approved and denied I-526 and I-829 petitions by Regional Center for the period January 1, 2014 to May 31, 2017 (the “I-526 Report” and the “I-829 Report”, respectively). As many of you know, CanAm has been a strong advocate for the publication of Regional Centers’ track records so that investors, agents, and attorneys have the most current and accurate information. Unfortunately, the USICS’ reports grossly and materially misrepresent CanAm’s stellar track record, which is the best in the EB-5 industry.
CanAm has always maintained the most accurate and up-to-date information for our investors’ filings – which includes carefully and regularly tracking all records of Form I-526 and I-829 approvals and denials. Accordingly, it took us a matter of minutes to confirm that the statistics in the USCIS’ reports did not bear any resemblance to CanAm’s actual track record. For example, the USCIS stated that the total number of Form I-526 denials allegedly issued to CanAm’s Regional Centers during the 3-year reporting period was 159, when in fact the actual number is a mere 12 petitions! Similarly, the I-829 Report listed only 1 Form I-829 approval for CanAm’s Pennsylvania DCED Regional Center when in fact 145 petition approvals were issued during the 3-year reporting period. These types of gross errors appear throughout the USCIS’ reports.
Needless to say, I am extremely disappointed and dumbfounded that the USCIS would publish statistics in such a careless manner. Even though the USCIS expressly states that it “makes no claims” that the published information is “complete, timely, or accurate,” it is irresponsible to send out such misleading numbers that cause unnecessary concern to our investors. By USCIS’ own admission, the goal of providing increased transparency to investors clearly has not been served.
CanAm takes great pride in its track record because it reflects the hard work and core values that we put into making sure our investors are protected. We remain the standard-bearer for the EB-5 industry by all objective accounts, having raised more than $2.5 billion EB-5 loans for over 50 projects; repaid principal, in full and on time, to more than 1,740 investors in 32 projects, totaling $871.5 million; received more than 3,300 Form I-526 approvals and more than Form 1,860 I-829 approvals; and created an estimated 72,000 new, full-time jobs in the United States. These statistics are not an accident, they are not due to luck. They are hard-earned, and that’s why the USCIS reports upset us so much.
I want you to know that it is rare for me to express my frustration this forcefully, but the USCIS’ careless reporting undermines the hard work of CanAm’s dedicated staff and its continuous efforts to maintain the highest levels of service to our investors and reporting to USCIS. Accordingly, CanAm is taking immediate steps to correct the information in the USCIS’ reports and will urge the agency to update its records as quickly as possible.