TOP EB-5 INDUSTRY RISING STARS
SALVATORE PICATAGGIO
AMERICAN IMMIGRATION ASSOCIATES/VISALEX | SENIOR ASSOCIATE MANAGER
Salvatore Picataggio has
prac tice d immigration law
since 2011 and joined American
Immigration Associates/
VisaLex in 2018. He represents
investors, business owners and
entrepreneurs, and has worked within the EB-5 Immigrant
Investor Program since the very beginning of his practice.
He is the Top Contributor to the EB5Investors.com Q&A
section, answering more than 1,700 questions. Picataggio is
a member of AILA (Central Florida chapter), Orange County
(Florida) Bar Association Immigration Committee, Orlando
Regional Realtor Association (Affiliate and Global Real Estate
Council), and the British-American Chamber of Commerce.
He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida
Levin College of Law.
WHAT TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING
IN THE EB-5 INDUSTRY?
I am seeing an increased sophistication and maturing of
both projects and investors. Investors are taking their
investments very seriously, and developers are recognizing
this, resulting in increasingly stronger and more diverse
offerings for investors, especially with redeployment,
bridge financing, and other structures that can benefit
both parties. Investors themselves are appreciating and
expecting more tools for working with their professionals
and projects, valuing not just experience, but service and
technology. I also notice and appreciate how EB-5
professionals, projects and investors are being proactive in
the shadow of regulatory changes.
WHY DID YOU GET INVOLVED
IN THE EB-5 INDUSTRY?
Frankly, by accident! I did not expect to be practicing EB-5 or
even immigration at all coming out of law school, but I was
able to find a job (the recession sent way more people to law
school than there were jobs) with a firm who spent many
years practicing in the EB-5 space. My very first assignment
was an I-924 amendment! Even though I did not plan for it, I
am happy I found a place in EB-5 and business immigration,
where I am able to contribute to both the growth of the U.S.
economy and help foreign families achieve their dreams.
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