A rising number of Chinese are applying for EB-5 visas, which give US citizenship in return for a minimum $500,000 investment into a business in the country, according to real estate services firm Savills Studley (Savills).
Chinese nationals are looking to park their wealth offshore, and Savills points out that the trend is increasing the demand for commercial property.
In the United States, Savills states that more than 6,400 people are currently on the waiting list for an EB-5 visa. It expects that the current year’s allotment for Chinese applicants will be reached by September. Last year, it was reached by late August.
There were close to 10,700 EB-5 visas issued last year, representing an increase of 25 per cent from 2013. Mainland China accounted for 85 per cent of recipients, as opposed to 81 per cent the year before, Savills said.
The United States property services firm went on to say that the increase has become an important source of capital for developers. Chinese investment in US commercial property has skyrocketed by 78 per cent from the previous year to $5.7 billion.
Australia has enacted a similar scheme for those who invest over $4 million and, again, more than 90 per cent of applicants are from China.
Australian property has been popular with Chinese investors for some time, but since the start of the anti-graft campaign in 2014, the rate of investment has increased.
