For many EB-5 investors, San Jose looks like a dream location, a booming tech hub where jobs seem easy to create and count. When you see cranes in the skyline, new offices opening, and constant demand for talent, it is natural to assume that any project in this region will comfortably satisfy EB-5 job creation requirements. The reality on the immigration side is more nuanced and depends heavily on the details of each project.
San Jose’s strength as the center of Silicon Valley can support strong EB-5 projects, but only when the business plan and job creation model line up with how this local economy really operates. High costs, tight labor markets, and complex developments can help or hurt you, depending on how they are managed. Investors who understand those factors are in a better position to protect both their capital and their immigration goals.
From our office in San Jose, Verma Law Firm has focused on immigration law for more than 23 years. We regularly review EB-5 business plans and job creation models tied to projects in Silicon Valley and across the Bay Area. In this guide, we share how EB-5 job creation rules work in practice and how the San Jose area can, when approached carefully, help you meet those requirements.
How EB-5 Job Creation Rules Work in Real Life
The EB-5 program requires each investor to create at least 10 new full time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers. Full time typically means at least 35 hours per week per position. These jobs must be permanent positions, not short-term independent contractor arrangements, and must be held by qualifying workers such as U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, or certain other authorized workers.
In a direct EB-5 investment, USCIS expects you to show actual jobs on the payroll of the new commercial enterprise or a wholly owned subsidiary. You are dealing with direct jobs, which means employees with wages, job descriptions, and work hours that can be documented. In a regional center investment, the rules allow counting some indirect and induced jobs, which are jobs created in the wider economy through project spending, not just on the project’s own payroll.
Indirect and induced jobs are usually calculated through an approved economic model. Economists look at construction spending, operating expenses, and projected revenue and then apply multipliers to estimate jobs supported throughout the local or regional economy. USCIS focuses heavily on the credibility of that economic report and on whether actual project progress matches the assumptions. Our attorneys have seen over many years that job creation problems seldom come from one statute or regulation. They usually arise when project changes, delays, or cost shifts break the connection between the economic model, the business plan, and what really happens in the field.
Timing is another critical piece. USCIS generally expects the 10 jobs per investor to be created within the period of the investor’s conditional residence or to be in the process of being created with a credible timeline. That is why long construction phases, slow hiring, or a late opening date can have real consequences. After handling business immigration matters for more than two decades, we pay close attention to these timing issues when we prepare EB-5 filings and when we review job creation updates for I-829 petitions.
Why San Jose’s Economy Attracts EB-5 Investors
San Jose sits at the heart of Silicon Valley, surrounded by some of the world’s largest technology companies, a dense startup ecosystem, and a robust network of suppliers and service providers. The city sees ongoing demand for office space, specialized facilities, housing, and infrastructure that supports both established tech giants and fast-growing firms. This kind of environment tends to generate new projects, new hiring, and high economic activity.
Alongside pure tech, there is constant need for hotels, extended-stay properties, restaurants, medical offices, warehouses, and transportation-related facilities that serve a highly mobile and international workforce. Construction cranes are a familiar sight near business districts and along major transportation corridors. For an EB-5 investor scanning the United States for promising locations, this combination of growth and diversity can be very appealing.
It is easy, in this context, to assume that any San Jose project marketed for EB-5 will naturally produce more than enough jobs for every investor involved. From our perspective as a San Jose based immigration firm, the local economy is a strong foundation, but it is not a guarantee. The way a project is structured, the sector it operates in, and the quality of the job creation plan matter just as much as the city’s overall growth story.
San Jose EB-5 Jobs: Sectors That Typically Work Well
Several types of projects in and around San Jose often lend themselves to clear, documentable EB-5 job creation when they are properly planned. Construction and real estate development are at the top of that list. Hotels, mixed-use developments, multi-family housing, and office buildings serving tech companies can generate substantial construction employment and, once operating, ongoing jobs in management, maintenance, and services. In regional center projects, both construction-phase and operating-phase jobs may be counted under the economic model.
Tech-adjacent facilities are another strong area. Business parks, data centers, specialized manufacturing spaces, and logistics hubs that support Silicon Valley companies can produce a web of direct and indirect jobs. Direct jobs may include operations staff, building engineers, and administrative teams. Indirect jobs may arise in suppliers, transportation companies, and other firms that expand to meet new demand. When we look at a San Jose project in these sectors, we pay close attention to how the economic report captures those relationships and whether the assumptions align with local market conditions.
Hospitality, healthcare, and education related projects also match well with San Jose’s demographics and workforce patterns. A hotel near major corporate campuses or the airport can create full time front desk roles, housekeeping, restaurant staff, and event management positions. Medical clinics and outpatient facilities can bring in nurses, technicians, and administrative personnel. Educational institutions or training centers that serve the local workforce need instructors, support staff, and facility management. Because these projects typically have a clear staffing plan tied to expected demand, they can be well suited to direct EB-5 models where payroll jobs must be documented.
Over the years, our attorneys at Verma Law Firm have advised businesses and investors connected with many of these sectors in the San Jose area. That local experience helps us look beyond glossy marketing materials and evaluate whether a given project’s sector, location, and business model are likely to generate EB-5 qualifying jobs that can be documented to USCIS standards.
Risks Unique to Creating EB-5 Jobs in San Jose
San Jose’s strengths come with specific risks that EB-5 investors should understand. A high-cost market means construction and labor are expensive. If a project faces cost overruns, developers may scale back scope, delay certain phases, or revise hiring plans to stay within budget. Those changes can reduce the number of direct jobs or alter the spending profile that an economic model relied on, which can, in turn, reduce indirect job estimates.
Permitting and development timelines in the Bay Area can also be longer than investors expect. Securing approvals for large projects, addressing environmental review requirements, or resolving neighborhood concerns can extend the pre-construction phase. When a project starts later than planned, construction jobs and operational hiring may shift forward on the calendar. For EB-5 investors, that can mean job creation occurs closer to the end of, or even after, the conditional residence period. USCIS can ask detailed questions about timing and may expect updated documentation to bridge the gap between original plans and new realities.
Competition for skilled workers is another factor. Tech firms and established contractors in San Jose compete aggressively for talent. If a project struggles to hire or retain staff, especially in specialized construction trades or technical roles, it may end up with fewer active positions than originally projected. For direct EB-5 investors, that leads to fewer actual payroll jobs. For regional center investors, it may affect both direct and indirect job counts if project activity slows or stays below forecasted levels.
In our practice, we frequently see these types of issues surface in USCIS Requests for Evidence and in questions at the I-829 stage. The problem is rarely the idea of San Jose as a location. The real issue is how project changes, cost pressures, or delays are handled and documented throughout the life of the investment. When we review a San Jose EB-5 project, we look closely at contingency planning and at whether the job creation analysis has enough margin to remain viable if conditions shift.
Direct vs. Regional Center EB-5 in a San Jose Project
When you evaluate an EB-5 opportunity in San Jose, one of the first decisions is whether you are looking at a direct investment or a regional center project. In a direct structure, the jobs you rely on must be full time positions on the payroll of the new commercial enterprise or related entities. The focus is on clear, traceable employment records. This can be a good fit for restaurants, small hotels, clinics, or other operating businesses with stable, predictable staffing plans.
Regional center projects, on the other hand, can count a mix of direct, indirect, and induced jobs based on an approved economic model. In San Jose, many large projects such as substantial mixed-use developments or infrastructure-related facilities rely heavily on construction-phase jobs calculated through such models. This can allow investors to benefit from the scale of big projects, but it also requires confidence in the underlying assumptions about spending, timelines, and local multipliers.
Neither model is automatically safer in San Jose. The direct route may provide more straightforward job documentation but can expose you more directly to the day-to-day performance of a single operating business. Regional center investments can diversify job sources through indirect and induced positions, yet they depend on the accuracy of projections for costs and revenues in a volatile, high-cost region. In our experience, issues arise when investors assume that a regional center structure means job creation is fully handled, without digging into how that particular San Jose project’s model works.
At Verma Law Firm, we routinely review economic reports and business plans for both types of EB-5 structures. We help investors understand how many jobs the project expects to create, how those jobs are allocated among investors, and how sensitive those numbers may be to changes in schedule or budget. This kind of analysis is especially important in Silicon Valley, where permitting processes, cost shifts, and rapid market changes are common.
How To Evaluate a San Jose Project’s EB-5 Job Creation Plan
Once you understand the basics, the key question becomes how to evaluate whether a specific San Jose project has a solid EB-5 job creation plan. Start with timing. Ask when construction is expected to begin, how long key phases are scheduled to last, and when the project anticipates reaching stabilized operations. Then, look at how those dates line up with your conditional residence period. If the schedule already looks tight on paper, any delay could put job creation under pressure.
Next, examine the assumptions behind hiring and spending. For operating jobs, review projected staffing charts and understand which positions will be full time and which will be seasonal or part time. For construction jobs and indirect jobs, ask how cost estimates were developed and whether they reflect current San Jose market conditions. If the project relies on older bids or cost assumptions that do not reflect today’s labor and material costs, the economic model may overstate job creation.
It is also important to understand how jobs are allocated among EB-5 investors. If a project plans to bring in a large number of EB-5 participants, confirm that the total job creation estimate provides a comfortable buffer above the minimum 10 jobs per investor. Pay attention to whether jobs are reserved for certain investors based on investment timing or priority. In a competitive market like San Jose, where costs and schedules often move, that buffer can be the difference between comfortably meeting the requirement and facing difficult questions at the I-829 stage.
These are the kinds of questions our attorneys walk through with EB-5 clients when we review offering documents, business plans, and economic reports. Because each case at Verma Law Firm is overseen directly by an attorney, not only by support staff, you have the opportunity to discuss how the project’s job creation strategy aligns with your specific immigration objectives. We focus on what USCIS will expect to see when the time comes to remove conditions, not just on whether the project looks attractive on a marketing slide.
How Our San Jose Immigration Team Supports EB-5 Investors
Supporting EB-5 investors goes beyond filing initial forms. We help clients review potential projects with an eye toward job creation, structure their petitions to match the project’s business plan and economic model, and respond to USCIS questions that may arise along the way. As the project progresses, we help gather and organize documentation that will eventually support the I-829 petition, including evidence of construction activity, payroll records, and updated economic analyses where appropriate.
Being based in San Jose allows our team at Verma Law Firm to stay close to the economic realities that shape local EB-5 projects. We see how sector trends, construction conditions, and workforce dynamics evolve in Silicon Valley, and we bring that context into every EB-5 consultation. That local perspective complements our more than 23 years of immigration law experience, giving clients both a deep understanding of USCIS expectations and a grounded view of the San Jose market.
Our managing attorney, Arjun Verma, is an immigrant himself, which gives our work a personal dimension. We recognize that for EB-5 investors, job creation numbers are not only economic figures. They are tied to your family’s long-term status and plans in the United States. We offer flat fees and payment plans to make multi-year representation more predictable, which is particularly valuable when an EB-5 case may require ongoing guidance through project milestones and the I-829 stage.
Plan Your San Jose EB-5 Strategy With Confidence
San Jose can provide fertile ground for meeting EB-5 job creation requirements, but success depends on more than choosing a project in a strong market. Investors who understand how USCIS evaluates job creation, how local costs and timelines shape real hiring, and how direct and regional center structures differ in practice are better equipped to make sound decisions. A careful review of the project’s job creation plan before you commit can help prevent difficult surprises years later.
If you are considering an EB-5 investment connected to San Jose or already invested in a Silicon Valley project and want to assess your job creation position, our team is ready to help. We can review your project documents, explain how the plan aligns with EB-5 rules and local conditions, and work with you to chart a clear path toward meeting immigration requirements.
Call (408) 560-4622 to discuss your San Jose EB-5 options with an attorney at Verma Law Firm.