The EB-5 market in 2026 does not look like the EB-5 market of 2015.
For more than a decade, industry conversations were dominated by overseas demand from a small group of high-volume countries, especially China. Today, quietly but decisively, the center of gravity has shifted toward investors who already live in the United States — many of them on H-1B or other professional visas — and toward Indian nationals in particular.
One of the clearest windows into this shift comes from escrow wire data presented by Dan Topple of Customers Bank at the June 2026 JTC Saul EB-5 conference in Miami. Because these figures are based on actual investor funding activity rather than only petition filings, they offer a rare, data-driven look at who is really investing into EB-5 projects today.
This article unpacks what that dataset shows, why it matters, and how it should reshape how investors, advisors, and project sponsors think about EB-5 strategy going forward.
| Country | FY2023 (10/1/22–9/30/23) | FY2024 (10/1/23–9/30/24) | FY2025 (10/1/24–9/30/25) | FY2026+ (10/1/25–Present) |
| China | 51.30% | 36.10% | 25.50% | 11.50% |
| India | 3.60% | 2.60% | 3.00% | 3.20% |
| United States | 30.90% | 41.40% | 53.80% | 71.10% |
| Canada | 1.90% | 1.60% | 2.30% | 3.10% |
| Vietnam | 1.70% | 3.20% | 3.10% | 2.60% |
| South Korea | 0.20% | 6.10% | 3.30% | 2.60% |
| Country | FY2023 (10/1/22–9/30/23) | FY2024 (10/1/23–9/30/24) | FY2025 (10/1/24–9/30/25) | FY2026+ (10/1/25–Present) |
| India | 28.30% | 45.90% | 55.60% | 72.30% |
| China | 37.80% | 32.60% | 22.70% | 13.90% |
| Canada | 9.40% | 6.80% | 6.20% | 3.40% |
| South Korea | 0.80% | 0.90% | 0.90% | 2.00% |
| Australia | 0.80% | 0.90% | 1.30% | 0.70% |
| Hong Kong | 0.80% | 0.50% | 1.50% | 0.50% |
| Vietnam | 0.80% | 0.50% | 0.90% | 0.50% |
| United Kingdom | 0.00% | 0.20% | 0.40% | 1.40% |
| All Others | 21.30% | 11.70% | 10.60% | 5.50% |
The Customers Bank dataset tracks EB-5 investor escrow wires by both:
The key trend is a steady and sharp rise in the share of EB-5 capital coming from investors who already reside in the United States, alongside a growing concentration of those investors holding Indian passports.
According to Dan Topple, "The data is based on approximately 100 projects dating back to the introduction of the RIA (both current and past projects) and is based on a data set of approximately 4500 investors, accounting for when they initially wired their subscription proceeds into the project account (escrow or, if no escrow, NCE)."
According to the conference presentation, the share of EB-5 investors residing in the United States at the time of funding has climbed dramatically over four fiscal periods:
| Fiscal Year | % of Investors Residing in U.S. |
|---|---|
| FY2023 | ~31% |
| FY2024 | ~41% |
| FY2025 | ~54% |
| FY2026+ | ~71% |
As of mid-2026, more than two-thirds of EB-5 investors funding through Customers Bank escrow accounts are already physically in the United States when they invest.
This represents a major structural shift from the historical pattern where most EB-5 investors lived abroad and pursued consular processing at the end of the immigration process.
The same dataset highlights India’s growing dominance within EB-5.
As a country of residence, Indians now represent a growing portion of U.S.-resident EB-5 investors.
As a passport country, Indian nationals now comprise an increasingly large percentage of total EB-5 investors:
| Fiscal Year | % of Investors by Indian Passport |
|---|---|
| FY2023 | ~28% |
| FY2024 | ~46% |
| FY2025 | ~56% |
| FY2026+ | ~72% |
While these figures are limited to escrow wires processed through Customers Bank, they strongly suggest that Indian nationals now comprise a majority of funded EB-5 investors within at least one major banking channel.
Importantly, many of these investors are already living in the United States when they invest.
A natural consequence of this concentration is the shrinking share of “all other” countries.
The “All Others” category as country of residence fell from approximately 21% in FY2023 to roughly 5.5% in FY2026+.
This suggests that the marginal EB-5 dollar today is increasingly coming from U.S.-resident professionals — often Indian nationals — rather than from overseas families working through traditional migration agency channels.
Several structural forces help explain why U.S.-resident investors, particularly Indian professionals, now dominate the dataset.
The EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (RIA) created the ability for certain investors already in the U.S. to file Form I-485 (Adjustment of Status) concurrently with their I-526E petition when a visa is available.
For a U.S.-based professional, concurrent filing can provide:
This is especially attractive to H-1B workers facing:
When EB-5 offers a path to permanent residence and near-term work flexibility, it becomes more than simply an investment migration program. It becomes a strategic alternative to remaining stuck in employment-based immigration backlogs.
Indian nationals in particular face severe employment-based visa backlogs.
For many mid-career professionals, waiting 10–20 years for an EB-2 or EB-3 priority date to become current is simply no longer acceptable.
For those with sufficient capital — or access to gifts and lawful loans — EB-5 becomes a way to:
This helps explain why the Customers Bank data shows both:
Historically, many EB-5 projects relied heavily on overseas migration agents, especially in China, Vietnam, and the Middle East.
Over the past several years, however, a growing percentage of EB-5 marketing has shifted toward:
That naturally captures investors who are already in the U.S. and often:
For prospective EB-5 investors already living in the U.S., the Customers Bank escrow data is not merely interesting — it has real strategic implications.
If most investors are already U.S.-resident, adjustment of status (AOS) is no longer a niche issue. It is now central to modern EB-5 planning.
At the same time, USCIS’s May 21, 2026 Policy Memorandum (PM-602-0199) reframed adjustment under INA §245 as “an extraordinary discretionary relief” rather than a routine alternative to consular processing.
For EB-5 investors, this means:
Investors should work closely with experienced immigration counsel to:
The rise of U.S.-resident investors does not eliminate visa availability concerns.
Post-RIA, EB-5 visas are divided into:
Recent Visa Bulletins continue to show:
For Indian H-1B professionals, the key question is no longer simply:
“Can I file concurrently?”
It is increasingly:
“Which EB-5 category positions my family best over the next 5–10 years?”
Investors should avoid assuming that a category listed as “Current” today will necessarily remain current throughout the process.
The Customers Bank data says a great deal about who is investing.
It says nothing about project quality.
Investors should avoid confusing:
with:
Even if an investor successfully receives immigration benefits, capital repayment is never guaranteed.
Thorough due diligence remains essential.
If most new EB-5 capital now comes from U.S.-resident professionals, then project communication must evolve.
Marketing materials increasingly need to assume readers:
Successful firms may increasingly resemble hybrid immigration-financial advisory platforms rather than traditional overseas migration sales organizations.
A high concentration of U.S.-resident investors increases the importance of:
Banks such as Customers Bank now sit at a critical intersection between investors, regional centers, and developers.
Strong escrow controls and transparent fund administration are becoming core competitive advantages.
Perhaps most importantly, the data suggests that EB-5 is evolving from:
“A program primarily designed to attract overseas capital”
into:
“A strategic immigration solution for highly skilled professionals already contributing to the U.S. economy.”
That shift may eventually influence:
A growing share of EB-5 investors now look very similar to today’s H-1B professionals already living and working in the United States.
Concurrent filing and adjustment of status are now major drivers of EB-5 demand, especially among Indian professionals.
Reserved categories — especially rural EB-5 — remain strategically important, particularly for investors concerned about future retrogression.
Strong immigration positioning does not eliminate investment risk. Careful project due diligence remains critical.
Escrow wire data, Visa Bulletin trends, and USCIS processing data can provide valuable insight into how the modern EB-5 market is evolving.
For investors, advisors, and project sponsors alike, understanding these trends is becoming increasingly important for making informed long-term decisions.