USCIS has posted the remarks of Sarah Kendall, Chief of the Immigrant Investor Program Office, who participated in the IIUSA EB-5 Industry Forum on November 10, 2020, and answered key program questions.
USCIS has posted the remarks here. They cover EB-5 topics which include: updates on the visa availability approach, the policy manual, various EB-5 form operations, Form I-829 separate decisions, program integrity and regional centers. Ms. Kendall also answered 18 questions that were submitted in advance.
One highlighted section of the remarks addressed I-526 and I-829 petition completion rates:
Regarding I-526 and I-829 completions, during the six-month period after building a more robust quality assurance and control program, IPO completed the adjudication of an average of 212 Form I-526 petitions each month from March 2019 through August 2019. This year, IPO is averaging 304 Form I-526 completions per month during the same six-month period. This is an increase of approximately 43%.
IPO has also improved upon I-829 completion rates. IPO averaged 157 Form I-829 completions per month for the six-month period of March 2019 through August 2019. That average was 265 during the same period of 2020, an increase of approximately 68%.