正文
该法规的反对者称，这条便捷通道是对巨富的偏袒。但对于中国日渐增长的职员阶层来说，要
取得在美国的居住权，该通道也正在变成最可行的途径之一
——而如今它却有消失的可能。
The nearly three-decade-old program has come under new scrutiny in recent months, in part because of a sales pitch to Chinese investors by White House senior adviser Jared Kushner’s family real estate business.
这个项目已经存在了将近30年，但最近几个月人们又开始对它进行新一轮的审视，部分原因是白宫高级顾问杰拉德·库什纳的家族房地产企业针对中国投资者的一次推销活动。（冬天毛注：见《
纽约时报：女婿库什纳在中国招徕移民投资，特朗普若隐若现（完整译文）
》）
Congress and the Trump administration are considering changing the rules for the investor visas as a means of cracking down on money laundering and visa-for-sale fraud. Potential changes, such as raising the investment threshold, would have little impact on China’s wealthiest. But they could shut out families such as Li and Qi, who despite riding the curve of upward socioeconomic mobility in China still see the United States as their best opportunity and this visa program as their best option.
国会和特朗普政府正在考虑改写投资签证的法规，借此打击洗钱和兜售签证诈骗。可能的改动包括提高投资门槛，而这对中国的顶级富人来说并不会有什么影响，却有可能会将李和齐这样的家庭拒之门外：他们虽然受惠于中国社会经济的上行流动性，但仍把美国看作最佳的出路，而这个签证项目则是他们前往美国的最佳手段。
The debate over the investor visas raises basic questions about the purpose of U.S. visa policies. Some say this program should be eliminated in favor of other immigrant groups, such as high-skilled workers or refugees escaping persecution — and not let people buy their way into the United States. Others say those with substantial amounts of money are best positioned to boost the American economy, by investing their wealth and creating jobs.
关于投资签证的争论引出了美国签证政策的宗旨问题。有人说，应该撤除这个项目，这样有利于其他移民群体，比如技术工作者或是因迫害而出逃的难民，而不是让人用钱开路进入美国。也有人说，那些财力雄厚的人才最有能力通过投资创造就业来促进美国经济发展。
“Are we looking for the people? Or are we looking for the money?” said William Cook, former general counsel of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service under President George H.W. Bush when Congress created the EB-5 visa program.
前任美国移民及归化局总律师威廉·库克说：“我们想要的到底是人，还是钱？”他任职是在乔治·H·W·布什总统任内，当时国会设立了EB-5签证项目。
“In the end, the simple truth is the government is looking for the money. And that may unfortunately exclude people who can no longer afford it, even if they may be the best people in the world.”
“到头来，事实就是政府想要的是钱，而这就可能会很不巧地将那些出不起钱的人排除在外，即使他们可能是全世界最优秀的人。”
During his lunch break at a Pizza Hut in one of Beijing’s ubiquitous shopping malls, Li, a 38-year-old civil engineer, explained the draw of the EB-5 investor visas for upwardly mobile Chinese without vast inherited fortunes.
李是一位38岁的土木工程师，他在
北京
一家常见的购物商场的必胜客吃午饭时，向我们解释了EB-5投资签证对于那些白手起家的中国人的吸引力。
查汉·李和米娅·齐在他们位于北京市丰台区的住所公寓建筑的庭院中陪奥斯卡玩耍。
“There are a lot of ways to immigrate to America, but this EB-5 program is the easiest,” said Li, who invested in a Miami residential skyscraper under construction.
李说：“移民到美国的方法有很多，但这个EB-5项目是最容易的。”他投资的是迈阿密的一座正在建设中的摩天住宅。
The only requirement is cash. Unlike other immigration visas, one does not need to have relatives in the United States or have any extraordinary ability, educational degree or professional achievement.
唯一的条件就是钱。和其他移民签证不同，你不需要在美国有亲戚，也不需要有什么特技、学位或职业成就。
The EB-5 program became attractive to U.S. real estate developers after the 2008 financial crisis as a reliable source of cheap capital when bank loans were difficult to come by. The developers pay low annual interest on investments from EB-5 visa holders, typically just 4 to 8 percent compared with 12 to 18 percent for conventional financing. After authorities confirm that the money has created at least 10 American jobs, a visa holder will be eligible for permanent residency — and to recoup his or her investment.
在2008年金融危机后，EB-5项目作为一种可靠的廉价资本来源，开始对美国房地产开放商产生吸引力——那时银行贷款很难获得。得到EB-5签证持有者投资的开发商们只需向他们支付低廉的年利率，通常只是4%到8%，显著低于传统融资的12%到18%。等到官方部门确认这笔钱已经为美国人创造了至少10个就业岗位后，签证持有者就具有了永久居住的资格，并可以取回其投资。
“It is good to own some U.S. dollars as the U.S. economy recovers from the financial crisis,” Li said.
李说：“现在美国经济正在从金融危机中恢复，持有一些美元是件好事。”
Far from being scions of China’s ruling class, Li and his wife, a customer service representative at a Beijing real estate company, earn about $100,000 a year. That is well above average for Beijing but not in the ranks of the wealthiest elites.
李的妻子是北京一家房地产公司的一名客服人员，两人年收入大约10万美元，远远谈不上是中国统治阶层的继承者。他们的收入确实比北京平均水平高出不少，但并不属于最富有的精英人群。
