Expats are flocking to countries in the Middle East in growing numbers. These countries are popular destinations for expats for reasons such as professional prospects, safety, ease of settling in, and more.
Let’s look at the population of the UAE as an example, out of 10.08 million people living in the country, 8.92 million are expats – that’s more that 88 percent of the population. The UAE is not an outlier with many other countries in the Middle East having a similar population composition. Another example is Oman, which has a population of 4.7 million, out of which 2.8 million are expats.
Families migrate to the UAE and similar Gulf countries in pursuit of a better life for themselves and their children. But because of limited options to stay for retirement, these countries are at times a stepping stone rather than a final destination for many expats. While Gulf countries are making great strides in introducing retirement options for residents, these options are relatively new and untested.
Even for those families that aim to stay in the Middle East for retirement, many of them still want their kids to go to the US for higher education and to perhaps live and work in America. That’s the main reason why the US golden visa is so relevant to expat families in the Middle East.
We sit with US licensed attorney Shai Zamanian, the director of The American Legal Center in Dubai as he explains his experience as a first generation immigrant to the United States and how he now assists families from the GCC looking to embark upon the same path to America.
In spirit of the World Cup hosted in Qatar, Zamanian explains: “The US is much like the World Cup in which people from around the globe put their differences aside for a common goal: to showcase excellence.”
Similar to the World Cup in which teams from around the world compete in a game with a clear set of procedural rules in order to achieve success, the US also has the recipe of excellence should immigrants choose to follow a set of clear guidelines.
Zamanian was barely able to make coherent sentences at the age of two when his parents fled a war-torn nation in search of opportunities in the Americas. As first generation immigrants his parents cultivated the recipe for excellence: study hard and follow the set of clear guidelines.
After studying at top universities and obtaining a doctorate in law, Zamanian began working on legal matters in construction finance during the Great Recession of 2018. In this era, large commercial developers were having a difficult time obtaining construction finance for their real estate projects and began to use the US golden visa route as a channel to obtain financing for their projects.
He explains that a major part of his success in guiding GCC families through the investment migration route to the US is his base of knowledge in commercial real estate law. “The golden visa route isn’t simply an immigration matter. The programme operates at the intersection of commercial real estate law and immigration policy,” he explains.
Upon growing in the segment of real estate law, in 2013, Zamanian moved from the US to Dubai to better educate families on the programme and perhaps make clients and friends along the way. “I had never visited Dubai, nor had any family or friends in the GCC. I just thought I should take my risks young and push to help families make the difficult but crucial decision to move to America.”
Now with a decade of experience in Dubai and the GCC, Zamanian has established his position as the pre-eminent consultant in the Middle East and emerging markets in relation to the golden visa. He has helped hundreds of families set up in the US, and based on US government numbers, in June of 2021 his office in Dubai filed 6 percent of all global applications through this golden visa route.
This is staggering since most of the applications are coming from the Far East in places like China and Vietnam. His associates at The American Legal Center in Downtown Dubai consider themselves as a think tank for the programme. They are the firm that sets the beat on controversial issues that arise and have been successful in challenging the US government on matters that pertain to GCC applicants.
“Under Trump, we faced a turbulent time. On the one hand the government was happy to allow investor families to migrate to the US, on the other we had controversy with the Trump visa ban on Middle Easterners,” Zamanian says.
The Trump travel ban (labelled the “Muslim ban” by critics) denotes a series of executive orders enacted by Donald Trump as President of the United States in 2017. Zamanian and his team had to challenge the US government on this policy to push through all the applicants from their office.
They were successful in challenging the government and won in their court battle in the Federal Courts of the US on first instance and without the need to appeal. This major victory in challenging policies of the head of state was one of the perennial achievements from The American Legal Center in Dubai.
“We have yet to have a denial on any of our applications, so long as I’m processing these files, I’ll see to it that every family and child has the opportunity to live out their own story, their own version of the American dream.”
What is the US golden visa?
The all-new investment immigration programme to the US is now fully relaunched and ready for Middle East business entrepreneurs and families. The US golden visa programme has new features that highly benefit investors, including better government oversight and greater investor protections.
Through the US golden visa programme, families out of the Middle East can obtain US residency and Green Cards with an investment of $800,000 in government pre-approved real estate projects in the US. With a single investment of $800,000, an investor, the investor’s spouse, and their children under the age of 21 can all obtain US Green Cards. The investment amount is returned after around five years of benefiting the US economy.
The US golden visa, officially known as the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme, was first created by the US Congress in 1990 to stimulate the US economy through injection of foreign capital and to boost job creation for US persons. The programme has been quite successful since its inception both among US developers and foreign nationals wishing to migrate to the US.
Many popular hotels, mixed-use, and other development projects were funded by EB-5 foreign investment, such as the Ritz Carlton Hotel in New York City, which is now operational and in full swing. In turn for their investment, each family is rewarded with an expedited path to US residency processed by The American Legal Center in Dubai.
Why the US?
The US has always been a popular destination for immigrants from around the world. It’s known as a melting pot open to people from the four corners of the globe with the common goal of bettering their lives and achieving the American dream. The country was founded on the ideal that all individuals are equal and entitled to their fundamental rights.
It’s this appeal of personal freedom along with immense opportunities for success that continue to motivate individuals and families from around the world to migrate to the US As the 35th US president, John F. Kennedy once said, the US is “a nation of immigrants.”
Since before the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in 1776, the US has always benefited from the many great contributions of immigrants. From Albert Einstein’s notable work in the field of physics and mathematics in the 20th century to modern-day entrepreneurs in the field of technology such as Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, first and second generation immigrants have widely contributed to the economy and advancement of the US on the world stage.
With the World Cup right around the corner, let’s look at the similarities between this international football tournament and the US as a country and as an immigration destination. Once every four years, people around the world put aside their differences and focus on a single passion: Football. The FIFA World Cup represents a universal language that can be understood and enjoyed by all despite cultural differences.
Spectators from all around the globe take pride in representing their nation and do not shy away from showcasing their pride by wearing their country’s flag and painting their faces with their national colours.
Winning the World Cup has both tangible and intangible benefits for a country. As for the tangibles, the winning country benefits from a monetary prize, better infrastructure, and an increase in foreign investment due to positive publicity.
As for the intangibles, the winner benefits from a heightened sense of pride and a reignition of hope and patriotism from its population. When a family of aspiring migrants hear the news of approval of their US Green Cards after many years of anticipation, it’s similar to a nation celebrating the news of their victory at the World Cup.
The benefit to the family is not only intangible in that they can take pride in becoming a part of a nation that respects all of its peoples and strives to treat all equally, it is also tangible as that family will have access to better healthcare, top quality education for their children, and better career opportunities in an economically and politically stable environment.
Migration journey of families out of the Middle East
To get one step closer to achieving the American dream, families in the Middle East are rushing to file for their US golden visas at The American Legal Center, the only post in the region that churns out these applications in expertise and volume.
Founder and leader of this think tank dedicated to providing US golden visa services to families in the Middle East, Zamanian has one goal in mind: To bridge the gap between the East and the West.
Zamanian started The American Legal Center in Dubai to make America accessible for all. “Access to America made me the person I am today,” says Zamanian. “I immigrated to the US along with my family at a very young age, from a nation grappling with a devastating war. My family and I had hopes of securing a better future for ourselves and immigrating to the US was our beacon of hope.
“From the moment I stepped foot in the United States, my life had forever changed for the better. My brother and I had access to top quality education and career opportunities that were not available to our parents in our home nation. My first-hand experience with the tremendous benefits of migration to the US motivated me to pave the path for other families aiming for access to the same opportunities.”
Understanding that Dubai is the nexus between the East and the West, Zamanian worked relentlessly to bring his vision to life by educating the Middle East market about the US golden visa. The team of US licensed lawyers and professionals at this post has filed the most EB-5 applications out of the Gulf region to date.
Zamanian has a decade’s worth of experience working on these matters in Dubai, under his direction, this post has never gotten a rejection and guarantees their professional fees back in case of a rejection. With great trust and confidence in their team, hundreds of families out of the Middle East have filed their US golden visa applications with this post and have successfully obtained their US Green Cards.
The top selling point of this government investment immigration programme is ease of application. The first step for prospective EB-5 applicants is to obtain pre-qualification from the team at The American Legal Center. Once pre-qualified, families must gather all supporting documents to show that both the source and path of their funds are lawful. They will then be shown a number of projects hosted by EB-5 industry experts in the US for their investment.
After the transfer of funds to the chosen EB-5 project, the Dubai post puts together the application, which will contain personal information about the family applying for their US golden visa along with financial information and documentation to show the legality of funds. Working with The American Legal Center makes the process simple and hassle free for families. They will be guided every step of the way.
The top enticing feature of this programme is that the investment is passive, meaning that once the application is submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which is the immigration office of the US government, there is not much to do for the applicant.
As an added feature, the new US golden visa programme introduced earlier this year allows families to file their Green Card applications and immediately live and work in the US through concurrent filing.
Previously, families that had filed their applications had to continue living in their country of original residence and must have waited until the approval of their US golden visa application before moving to the US. But with the introduction of the new programme, it’s possible for families to live and work in the US while they wait for the arrival of their US golden visa.
Benefits of the US golden visa
So what are the benefits to a family applying for the US golden visa programme? With a US golden visa, families can work and live in the US and have a stable path to obtaining their US passports. By living in the US, families can better their lives and secure the future of their children in a politically and economically stable country where the standard of living is high.
The US golden visa allows families to have access to the best healthcare system in the world. The top hospitals and pharmaceutical companies are located in the US, meaning that patients have access to the best doctors and medicines for their treatment.
The US is time and time again setting records in researching and developing the most innovative medical equipment and medicines in the world. With the Covid-19 pandemic nearly behind us, the importance of access to healthcare is highlighted more than ever before.
The US played a pivotal role in the development of the Covid-19 vaccine as three of the vaccines widely used around the world (Johnson & Johnson, BioNTech-Pfizer, and Moderna) were developed by US pharmaceutical companies.
The US population was among the first to have access to the vaccine and so access to healthcare is at the top of the list of reasons why families can benefit from living in the US with a US golden visa in hand.
Now let’s speak about the number one reason why families participate in the EB-5 programme: To unlock educational benefits for their kids. The US golden visa provides access to the best and most prestigious academic institutions in the world. A Green Card holder is at an advantage compared to international students because they have higher chances of acceptance to US universities.
Another benefit is that a Green Card holder will be considered as a “domestic student” rather than an “international student” and therefore can take advantage of considerably lower tuition rates. In addition to lower tuition costs, the US government provides financial assistance to all students to help cover costs of tuition, housing, books, transportation – all costs associated with being a full-time student.
Zamanian explains, “Most of my clients from the GCC are doing the programme for the future benefit of their kids. Parents will not pay out of pocket for the educational expenses of their kids.”
Education is only the first step of the way for a young adult wishing to have a successful professional career. While studying, students who obtain the golden visa can have access to paid research facilities, work part-time throughout their college days, have jobs lined up for their summers and be in a position to bolster their resumes for the most competitive graduate schools.
“It simply isn’t enough to have good grades,” Zamanian explains. “In the competitive market we operate today, students need real world job experience to obtain a position at the top schools. If an aspiring medical student wants to obtain admission at Harvard Medical School, the admissions team likes to see paid research in commercial labs, summer jobs working alongside doctors in clinics, and other opportunities that are reachable for US Green Card holders.”
After graduation from a top rated university, the next step is to find a job. With a Green Card in hand, graduates are placed at a huge advantage. Green Card holders don’t have to worry about obtaining work authorisation and securing an H1-B visa to work in the United States. Employers in the US are well aware of the hassles of hiring international graduates and thus highly prefer to hire US persons. Also, many career positions, such as certain government jobs, are only open to US persons.
So what’s next for interested families?
The process is simple. Once a family has made up their mind about migrating to the US through obtaining the US golden visa, all they need to do is contact The American Legal Center in Dubai. “In this fast-paced world, the question before you is if you want to be a spectator or a player in the game,” says Zamanian.
“If you want to partake in the EB-5 programme, we are able to handle your needs with the utmost professionalism. Join our team and let us coach you through this journey and meet your ultimate goal.”
To help families determine if they are eligible for this programme, Zamanian doesn’t charge for the initial consultation. After a file has been pre-qualified, the actual application process starts and Zamanian and his team of US licensed lawyers will guide you through the requirements and steps to obtaining your US golden visa.
Follow us on
