The U.S.
Population: 328.2 million
Area: 9.83 million square kilometers
Language: English
Currency: U.S. dollar
Capital: Washington
Popular destinations: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle
Geography
The 48 states and Washington, DC are located in central North America, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Alaska is located in the northwest of the North American continent, Canada to the east, and Russia across the Bering Strait to the west. Hawaii is located in an archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean in Oceania. The United States also has many overseas territories and islands in the Caribbean and Pacific.
Economy
The United States is the world’s largest economy today. In 2019, its gross domestic product (GDP) is approximately 21.43 trillion U.S. dollars, accounting for about a quarter of the world economy, and its per capita GDP is approximately 65,281 U.S. dollars. The United States is the world’s second-largest trading country, and the top five trading partners are China, Canada, Mexico, Japan and Germany. The United States is also the world’s largest oil producer and the largest natural gas producer. The United States has a complete range of industries and advanced production technology, making it the second-largest industrial country in the world. The United States is the world’s second largest agricultural country with advanced agricultural production technology and excellent crop varieties. It is the largest exporter of wheat, corn, and soybeans. The United States ranks among the world’s leading technologies in terms of road, rail, water transportation, and aviation technology and transportation volume. In addition, the United States ranks first in the world in terms of scientific and technological research and technological product innovation. At the same time, the United States owns most of the core technologies in the world, so the United States has always been superior to other countries in technological development.
Taxation
The federal, state, and local governments of the United States implement a thorough tax-sharing system for taxes based on the division of powers and responsibilities. The federal and state laws are separate, and local taxes are determined by the state. The three levels of taxation are collected and managed separately. Federal income tax uses progressive tax rates, divided according to income class. The U.S. federal personal income tax rate for 2019 is 10%-37%. In addition, seven states in the United States are exempt from state personal income tax: Washington, Florida, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, Texas, and Alaska. Inheritance and gift tax adopts a progressive system, and the tax rate is 18% -40%. Real estate tax is different in every state and region in the United States, and the tax rate is about 1%-3% per year.
Healthcare System
The overall standard of medical conditions in the United States is relatively high and the facilities are complete. A huge amount of money is invested in medical research every year, most of which are private investment. The U.S. healthcare system is not entirely publicly funded, but is paid by public and private parties. The U.S. does not have universal health insurance. The United States has private and two government-operated health insurance plans, namely Medicare and Medicaid public health insurance, which are only applicable to the elderly, people with disabilities and low-income people. Others can only purchase private insurance, or be insured by their employers.
Education
The American education system implements 12 free compulsory education, that is, five years in elementary school, three years in junior high school, and four years in high school. The mainstream entry options for high school graduates include four-year undergraduate courses offered by universities (university or college), or associate degree courses offered by community colleges. The community college course lasts for two years. After completion, students can apply to transfer to the university to enter the third year of university. A conservative estimate is that there are about 3,400 universities in the United States. Famous American universities include members of the Ivy League, as well as Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The United States is the most important education hub in the world, attracting many international students from all over the world to come to study every year. Among the top 20 universities in the 2020 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 14 schools in the United States are selected, including: California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, Harvard University, Yale University, University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, Cornell University, etc.
Employment Status
The average annual salary in the United States is US$43,000 (approximately HK$333,000), and the average hourly wage is US$20.9 (approximately HK$162)
Medical staff (such as surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, etc.): The annual salary ranges from 100,000 to 220,000 US dollars (approximately 77.5 to 1.7 million Hong Kong dollars)
Lawyer: The annual salary is about 129,000 US dollars (approximately 1 million Hong Kong dollars)
Management staff: annual salary of about 103,000 US dollars (approximately 798,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Tax manager: annual salary of about 110,000 US dollars (approximately 853,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Computer programmer/engineer: The annual salary ranges from 75,000 to 96,000 US dollars (approximately 580,000 to 744,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Accounting/audit: annual salary of about 67,000 US dollars (approximately 520,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Teacher: The annual salary ranges from 53,000 to 83,000 US dollars (approximately 410,000 to 643,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Chef: The annual salary is about 44,000 US dollars (approximately 340,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Barber: The annual salary is about US$28,000 (approximately 217,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Tour guide: The annual salary is about 26,000 US dollars (approximately 200,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Fast food restaurant waiter: annual salary of about 18,000 US dollars (approximately 140,000 Hong Kong dollars)
Popular Industries and their Distributions
New York: Finance, Shipping, Publishing, Advertising, Broadcasting, Real Estate, Media, Politics, Education, Entertainment, Fashion
San Francisco: Silicon Valley-High-tech
Los Angeles: Recording, Television, Film Production, Petrochemical, Marine, Aerospace Industry, Electronics, Finance
Northeast: Heavy Industry Center
Southeast: Medical Research, Tourism, Construction
South and Midwest: Agriculture
The U.S. “Immigration Prison”
If green card holders want to retain their permanent residency status, they must enter the country once every six months and leave the United States for no more than 183 days each year. If you leave the United States for more than one year, you will be deemed to have given up your green card
If you want to apply for naturalisation in the United States, you need to live in the United States for two and a half years within five years, and stay in the United States for at least six months each year
If you are away from the United States for more than 6 months, the remaining months cannot be counted within the two and a half years of residence time; if you stay abroad for one year or more, the calculation of residence time will be suspended.
The “lowest” threshold investment immigration program
The US EB-5 Investment Immigration Program is the fastest, easiest and most reliable way for investors, their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 to obtain green cards and obtain permanent residency in the United States.
EB-5 is an investment immigration program managed by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). It was established by the US Congress in 1990 to attract foreign investment and stimulate job creation. Through the EB-5 project, foreign investors can obtain a U.S. green card (becoming a legal permanent resident of the U.S.) and even become a U.S. citizen. Under normal circumstances, an investor needs to invest USD 500,000 in a U.S. commercial or real estate development project, and the business or project needs to create 10 jobs for each investor.
Learn more
U.S. Investment Immigration EB-5