How late can I add my daughter to my EB-5 application?

Both your spouse and daughter should be listed in the I-526 case. She can later decide whether she will immigrate to the US either by accompanying you or following to join you at the consular processing stage. If you omit your child, you may be later questioned on why the child was omitted.

Legally, you should be able to add your daughter any time up until she ages out at 21 years old. If, however, you do not list her on the form at the time of filing, you may have to explain why you did so when you add her.

I would list her now and then remove later if she is not coming. If you add her later, USCIS may question whether she is your daughter.

There is no adding of family members to an EB-5 application. If it asks you to name your spouse and children, go ahead and put them all on the form. After the EB-5 is approved and the case is either sent to your US consulate or you file an I-485 Adjustment of Status form, that is when you decide which family members want to immigrate. We do not recommend leaving off any children when the form is filed as when they try to get visas or green cards, you will be asked why you left them off the forms.

If there is a chance of adding her later, it is better to just include her now at the time of filing I-526 as a dependent and then, after that is adjudicated (which is taking approximately 18 to 24 months from filing), you can decide whether or not to continue with her processing for permanent residence/immigrant visa processing. There is nothing lost by adding her at the I-526 stage as a dependent.

You may add your daughter at the visa processing stage with NVC after your I-526 is approved by USCIS, as long as she is qualified as a child at the time the visa becomes available.

Why not add your daughter now? Otherwise, you will have to sponsor your daughter separately once you are granted lawful permanent resident status.

You do not have to add your daughter at the EB-5 Investor I-526 Petition stage. Once the petition is approved and you are ready to apply for your immigrant visa through the American Consulate in your home country or, if you are in the U.S., through Adjustment of Status, you would want to add your daughter at that time. You should clearly list your daughter as a beneficiary at the time of filing. There is zero downside in doing so. That does not mean that she necessarily has to apply for her immigrant visa.

The I-526 asks for information on your spouse and children. In addition, it also asks you to indicate whether they will be applying for a visa abroad or for adjustment of status as your dependents. It does not commit them to file for a green card immediately when the priority date is reached. They have the option of filing later.

Yes, you can add your daughter now on the petition and then choose later whether she will immigrate with you (accompanying you or following to join). It is better to add her now rather than try to explain later why you did not include her on the I-526 form when you file for her following to join the case.

All of your children must be listed on the application. So long as they are under 21, they can immigrate with you.