Records establishing the lawful origin of the invested capital across its full history — for example, employment and tax records for savings, sale documents for property, gift or loan agreements, and bank records tracing the funds' movement into the new commercial enterprise.
Trace history, not just the final wire transfer
A single bank statement showing funds leaving an account does not establish where those funds originally came from. Build the documentation backward from the investment to its lawful source, filling gaps such as unexplained large deposits before they become a review issue rather than after a request for evidence is issued.
A useful EB-5 document index follows money, ownership, and jobs. For money, gather tax filings, contracts, bank records, loan papers, gift or inheritance evidence, and each transfer receipt. For the project, gather offering or operating documents, subscription or partnership materials, escrow terms, and job methodology. Hypothetical example: A rare-book dealer receives an inheritance decades after the estate was settled, but only presents a recent bank deposit. The estate records and distribution documents explain lawful source; the deposit alone does not. Label documents by date and transaction step so the path can be followed without assumptions. Preserve signed versions of project records, because later conditions evidence may depend on the precise undertaking made at entry.
Create a date-indexed binder that separates personal source evidence from project materials. Include a concise transfer chart with sender, recipient, account, date, and purpose. This lets a reviewer test the full capital path without guessing which pages belong to the investor and which belong to the project.