Hello Peter, I have a friend coming from China and pursuing bachelor degree in America under F1 visa. What are some options available that can get green card as soon as possible other than the traditional route f1-> h1b-> eb3 ?
You could always look at an E2 visa if you don't want to invest $800,000 in an EB-5 project; however, investment amounts vary from $150-400,000. The range is based on what USCIS would consider a "significant investment" based on your country of citizenship. E2s don't lead to a green card or US citizenship, but you may find a USC/PR spouse or another path while saving some capital.
Either E2 or EB-5 will have significant fees associated with them. Typical EB5 "administration/syndication" fees will run $80,000. You may be able to reduce this by going to the EB-5 Project directly and negotiating. Most of the time, 90% of that fee is used to pay a foreign agent(aka finder) for bringing the investor
As long as the company has the ability to pay the offered green card wage, green card sponsorship by small companies usually works. The main issues are unrelated to a company's size.
Is self-sponsorship an option?