I-956F is the project's approval. Your petition is a different filing.
I-956F is USCIS project approval for a regional-center EB-5 offering. What the form is, why it matters on a rural filing, and what it does not decide.
Parent guide: EB-5 Regional Center Program: Complete Investor Guide (2026)
What is I-956F?
Form I-956F is the USCIS Application for Approval of an Investment in a Commercial Enterprise — the project-level filing for a regional-center EB-5 offering. Official form page: uscis.gov/i-956f. It reviews the new commercial enterprise, job-creation plan, TEA claim, and offering. It is not the investor’s petition.
Filed vs approved vs I-526E
When people say a rural EB-5 project is “approved,” they usually mean the I-956F is approved. That is a USCIS decision at the project level.
Filed means the project application is pending. Approved means USCIS has looked at the project as a project. Each investor still files I-526E, still documents source of funds, still must show the investment was made and sustained.
I-956F approval is not a green card. It is not source-of-funds clearance. It is not a statement that capital is safe or that returns are assured.
Do not confuse I-956F with the regional center’s designation
I-956F is not the regional center’s own designation filing. Different form. Different question.
Ask: Is the I-956F approved? Same NCE? Same rural/TEA claim as the offering? Same jobs methodology as the package?
What rural still needs
Rural is how many families get to the $800,000 minimum and the reserved pool. Those still have to sit on a real project that actually qualifies as rural — see Rural TEA.
Example of an I-956F approved rural offering Veras advises on: American Energy EB-5 LLC / Haynesville. Families still document capital — Source of funds.
Haynesville
Veras Capital advises on a rural natural gas project in the Haynesville shale in North Louisiana. USCIS has approved the I-956F for that project.
Energy is the asset. The purpose is EB-5: rural TEA, jobs, a green-card path earned on the filings.
See: verascap.com · Projects · Source of funds · Two clocks · Rural TEA.
Educational only. Not legal or immigration advice.
FAQs
What is Form I-956F?
Form I-956F is USCIS project-level approval for a regional-center EB-5 offering (see uscis.gov/i-956f). It reviews the NCE, job-creation plan, TEA claim, and offering. It is not the investor’s I-526E petition and not a green card.
Does I-956F approval mean my petition is approved?
No. Each investor still files I-526E, still documents source of funds, and still must show the investment was made and sustained. I-956F approval is not a green card, not source-of-funds clearance, and not capital safety.
Is I-956F the same as regional center designation?
No. Do not confuse I-956F with the regional center’s own designation filing. Ask whether the I-956F is approved, whether it matches the same NCE and rural/TEA claim, and whether the jobs methodology matches the package.
What is Veras’s Haynesville project?
Veras Capital advises on a rural natural gas project in the Haynesville shale in North Louisiana (American Energy EB-5 LLC). USCIS has approved the I-956F for that project. Energy is the asset; the purpose is EB-5—rural TEA, jobs, and a green-card path earned on the filings.