By: Jessica DeNisi and Mine Ekim
An Evolving Tool with High Stakes
As part of the post-RIA (EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022) landscape, regional center (RC) audits have emerged as a high-stakes compliance mechanism with broad implications. While the official rationale is to uphold program integrity and detect fraud, the reality is more complex. The audit process itself remains uneven, opaque, and at times detached from the very purpose it purports to serve.
This article provides practical insights drawn from the experiences of outside immigration counsel and in-house counsel as well as industry feedback. This article raises key questions about the audit’s design, implementation, and consequences, and argues for a forward-looking advocacy framework to support both program integrity and sustainable EB-5 operations.
Are Audits Serving Their Purpose?
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) audits are presumably intended to uncover fraud, prevent abuse, and ensure compliance with EB-5 statutory, regulatory, and policy requirements. In practice, the audit process can feel disconnected from this mission. Early audits were broad in scope and, in some cases, duplicative of information already submitted to USCIS via I-956G filings.
More recent audits show signs of standardization, but operators still face uncertainty due to the lack of published audit guidelines, undermining the very credibility and proactive compliance measures audits seek to reinforce. If audits are to strengthen program integrity, USCIS should publish a standardized audit framework or checklist, similar to United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) examination manuals, to align expectations, mitigate uncertainty, and reduce unnecessary burden.
What Signal Does a Completed Audit Send – Marketing Advantage or Grey Zone?
Regional centers that have undergone an audit and emerged without a Notice of Intent to Terminate (NOIT) or similar notice, may be inclined to view this as a “clean bill of health,” but regional centers should be cautious about how they interpret and communicate completion of the audit process. There is currently no official audit “grade” or report, making it somewhat unclear as to what the audit closure and the audit completion letter actually means. Moreover, USCIS has not confirmed whether the information received and reviewed during the audit process influences adjudications of other petitions or forms, such as Form I-829 or Form I-956G. Presenting audit completion as an endorsement risks overstating its significance and possibly misleading investors. To promote transparency and avoid misinterpretation, USCIS should considering issuing brief written audit summaries (even when no adverse findings are made).
While some may view audit completion as a marketing tool, regional centers should exercise caution. Without clear standards from USCIS, announcing a completed audit in promotional materials can raise legal and ethical concerns. Regional centers should consider using only factual descriptions and avoid language that equates an audit with project approval or endorsement of RC operations or compliance practices. Industry stakeholders may wish to develop developing best practices for audit-related disclosures to investors and agents.
Preparing For the Audit Process
Although every audit is different, certain patterns and procedures are emerging as USCIS seems to be moving towards a more structured approach. Regional centers should expect requests for organizational charts (including historical ownership), resumes of key personnel and those in compliance roles, copies of Form I-956G filings and supporting exhibits, project documentation (e.g., Form I-956F filings), records of the flow of capital and banking information, job creation methodology and verification, investor tracking spreadsheets, CRM systems and related databases, and evidence of policies and procedures for compliance, among other potential requests. Regional centers should also expect tighter deadlines for production and, in some cases, “joint” audits for affiliated RCs.
Nonetheless, gaps remain, especially when it comes to the as yet unresolved issue of applying post-RIA standards to pre-RIA conduct. Regional centers may feel compelled to comply with sweeping requests, even when USCIS’s legal authority over pre-RIA activities is unclear. Regional centers should adopt a two-pronged approach: cooperate fully with legitimate requests while documenting and challenging potential overreach.
For example, regional centers may wish to request clarification for certain ambiguous government requests in writing, limit document production to only relevant date ranges, and document the legal rationale for not providing documents that are outside the scope of the audit. Regional centers should also negotiate reasonable deadlines to allow adequate time for thorough review before production, and maintain detailed records of all communications and document production requests related to pre-RIA activity. Regional center’s immigration counsel can help prepare such responses in coordination with the RC in a manner that maintains cooperation while preserving the RC’s legal position. Close coordination between outside immigration counsel and inhouse counsel is critical to ensure consistency, manage risk, and balance regulatory compliance with the RC’s operational realities.
Consequences, Finality, and Compliance Impact
One of the most troubling aspects of the audit process is what happens after. If USCIS concludes an audit without issuing a Notice of Intent to Terminate (NOIT), is the matter considered closed and truly resolved? Can the findings be revisited years later? How are audit findings communicated internally across USCIS, and how might they influence unrelated petitions or applications?
USCIS must provide guidance on the finality of the audits, the scope of information sharing and access between internal divisions, the rights of regional centers to challenge findings, and how remedial actions are treated in a NOIT or a post-audit environment.
Clearer regulatory or policy guidance from USCIS on the audit process and its consequences would help regional centers better understand their compliance obligations and foster greater confidence in the audit process. The absence of clear rules breeds uncertainty, which undermines compliance planning.
Efficiency, Evolution, and Industry Role
USCIS has signaled interest in expanding the volume of audits, which makes efficiency crucial for both USCIS and the regional centers. Practical measures that may streamline the process include targeting audits using risk-based selection criteria and implementing enhanced training for auditors to ensure consistency and fairness. USCIS should also streamline its information requests to reduce administrative burden and introducing standardized audit report formats to improve clarity and consistency. Finally, USCIS should regularly review and update audit criteria based on industry feedback to ensure relevance and practicality.
As audit frequency increases, industry collaboration becomes more important. Stakeholders should proactively share feedback and advocate for refinement of procedures that reduce administrative friction while upholding program goals. USCIS should create a public facing audit Q&A or guidance bulletin to respond to common industry questions.
Conclusion: Audits as a Living Tool
Regional center audits are here to stay. While they present challenges, they also present an opportunity to demonstrate robust governance and sound compliance and operational practices. For regional centers, this means maintaining organized records, responding cooperatively but thoughtfully to USCIS requests, and engaging in industry advocacy for a more transparent and predictable process. Handled well, audits can enhance program credibility with investors and regulators while also encouraging forward looking compliance practices among regional centers. Done poorly, audits risk creating confusion, investor uncertainty, and undue burden on good actors.
This article aims to serve as both a resource for regional centers preparing for audits and a platform for further discussion and advocacy. It is time for USCIS and industry leaders to work together toward a shared audit framework that prioritizes both integrity and sustainability. Greater collaboration between USCIS and industry stakeholders is essential to evolving the audit process into a transparent, fair, and effective compliance mechanism.
The material contained in this article does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only. An attorney-client relationship is not presumed or intended by receipt or review of this presentation. The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.
Reprinted with permission from the November 2025 edition of the Fall 2025 IIUSA Regional Center Business Journal. All rights reserved. Further duplication without permission is prohibited.
