Foreign ski-area investors sue U.S. over residency petitions

Montpelier, Vt. — Foreigners who invested in northern Vermont ski area developments that are now linked to a fraud case are suing the federal government for failing to act on their petitions for U.S. residency.

The 74 investors bankrolled $500,000 each in projects at Jay Peak and Burke Mountain through a visa program with hopes of getting permanent residency if the developments created a certain amount of jobs.

In the lawsuit filed Friday in Florida, the lawyers for the investors accuse the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of leaving the residency petitions of 150 foreigners in limbo.

The agency declined to comment Wednesday, saying it does not comment on pending litigation.

One man was denied boarding planes in two separate instances when he was traveling to India due to his father’s ailing health, the lawyers stated in the lawsuit.

In another example, a man has been unable to close his business in India and move it to the U.S., “leading to considerable financial loss, mental stress, and inconvenience created by the need to maintain presence in two locations,” the lawyers wrote. The man “has not been able to permanently and comfortably settle down with his family in the U.S.”

They argue they have been harmed because their investment funds are at risk and because they do not know whether they will get permanent residency.

The EB-5 visa program helps foreigners obtain permanent residency by investing in job-creating developments in the U.S.

The investors want the government to be required to adjudicate their petitions within 30 days.