IN THIS GUIDE · Trace farmland-sale proceeds through the farm corporation before they reach the EB-5 escrow
Start with the EB-5 eligibility and application overview
Document the land before the sale
Source-of-funds review does not begin with the sale statement. It asks how the corporation acquired the land, with what money, and whether that money was lawfully earned. Gather the original transfer documents, the corporation's financial statements for the years around acquisition, and the tax returns that reported farm income. If a quarter was inherited by a parent and rolled into the corporation, bring the estate records. The older the acquisition, the more the reviewer relies on a coherent narrative supported by whatever records survive. Create an exhibit list that begins with acquisition and ends with sale proceeds. It should flag missing years early, while an accountant or records office may still be able to retrieve support.
Show the path from corporation to investor
The corporation, not the parents, sold the land, so the proceeds must be shown moving lawfully to the individual investor. A dividend requires a directors' resolution and the corporation's tax reporting; a shareholder loan repayment requires the loan ledger showing the original advance. The reviewer will expect the accountant's statements and the bank records for both the corporation and the personal account. Do not route the money through a family member's account for convenience; every extra hop is another set of records to produce. Reconcile the corporate ledger, directors' resolution, tax reporting and bank transfers before funds leave Canada. The strongest narrative follows the same order as the money.
Assess the project as a separate exercise
A rural project may qualify for the US$800,000 amount and for the visa set-aside that the Reform and Integrity Act reserved for rural investments, but that classification must be verified for the specific location at the time of investment. A direct investment, as opposed to a regional-center investment, means the ten full-time jobs must be created by the enterprise itself and appear on its payroll. Obtain the business plan, the job-creation timeline and evidence of the enterprise's legal formation, and have them assessed independently of the family's funding. Ask for the project's job methodology, timetable and records that will later prove payroll. A rural label or optimistic projection does not replace evidence that the required jobs will materialize.
Understand what participation and conditional residence require
The investor must be engaged in the management or policy formulation of the enterprise; a direct investment usually means a board seat or a defined management role rather than passive ownership. Approval of the investor petition is followed by an immigrant visa or adjustment of status, giving two years of conditional residence; Form I-829 to remove conditions is generally filed in the ninety days before that period ends. The spouse and unmarried children under twenty-one are derivatives. Fees are in the USCIS fee schedule and the Visa Bulletin governs availability. Set reminders from the date conditional residence begins and preserve the enterprise records needed for the later conditions-removal filing. The first approval is a milestone, not the end of the investor's evidence burden.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.