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PRESIDENT Donald Trump has introduced a new $5 million “gold card” visa plan, with the promise that this exclusive entry pass will be available in just two weeks.
Back in February, the Republican revealed his intentions to start offering these visas to foreigners aspiring to relocate to America and contribute to job creation, calling the concept “green-card-privileges-plus”.
He gloated to reporters abord Air Force One: “For $5 million, this could be yours.
“That was the first of the cards. You know what that card is?
“It’s the gold card – the Trump card.”
Trump claimed he was the first buyer of the bombshell card but was unsure on who the second buyer was.
He added that the card will be out in “less than two weeks, probably”.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick made the claim last month that over 1,000 gold cards had been sold.
He also said that over 37 million people globally have the means of buying one.
The EB-5 initiative provides investors the chance to seek permanent residency in the U.S. if they commit to the required investment in a U.S. commercial venture and aim to create or maintain 10 full-time permanent jobs.
Lutnick described the EB-5 program as “full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud,” adding, “It was a way to get a green card that was low priced.”
Once vetted, gold card holders “can invest in America and we can use that money to reduce our deficit,” he said.
The president projected that the gold card will attract “very high level people” who contribute to job creation.
With these cards, “you’re getting big taxpayers, big job producers, and we’ll be able to sell maybe a million of these cards, maybe more than that,” Trump said.
The US currently offers a range of visas for foreigners who want to live and work in the country, each with its own set of requirements and limitations.
For those seeking long-term residency, the Green Card application process can be rigorous and time-consuming, often taking years.
It’s unclear, however, how long a ‘Gold Card’ would take to obtain and what additional measures – other than financial – would be needed to qualify.
The EB-5 visa program was created by Congress in the 1990s – but with different threshold requirements compared to today.
Referring to the $36.5 trillion national debt, Lutnick explained previously: “There’s a line for EB-5 of 250,000 right now.
“200,000 of these gold green cards [at $5 million] is $1 trillion to pay down our debt.”
How does the US visa system work?
The US currently offers a range of visas for foreigners who want to live and work in the country, each with its own set of requirements and limitations.
Broadly, visas fall into two categories: non-immigrant visas, which are temporary and typically issued for work, study, or tourism, and immigrant visas, which provide a pathway to permanent residency (a Green Card).
For those seeking long-term residency, the Green Card application process can be rigorous and time-consuming, often taking years.
Some applicants obtain Green Cards through family sponsorship, employer sponsorship, or humanitarian programs such as refugee or asylum status.
Others may qualify through investment-based programs like the EB-5 visa, which allows individuals to apply for permanent residency if they invest a significant amount of money in a US business and create jobs.
Nonimmigrant visas, on the other hand, include work-based visas such as the H-1B for skilled workers, L-1 for intra-company transfers, and O-1 for individuals with extraordinary abilities.
Many of these visas have strict eligibility criteria and annual caps, making them highly competitive.
The complexity and length of the US immigration process mean that many foreign nationals face long wait times and significant legal hurdles before securing the right to live and work in the country permanently.
Who will qualify for the gold visa?
Trump previously revealed this route was for people “of wealth or people of great talent”.
He also announced this program will be a way to bring in investors who will build companies and provide jobs.
He did not give specific job creation requirements but said applicants will go through vetting to ensure they are “wonderful, world-class global citizens”.
Trump did not confirm if there will be a cap on the number of gold visas handed out but he suggested around one million could be sold to generate money for the government.
He added that more details about the big money visa will be revealed in two weeks.
How much will the visa cost and what will people get for that money?
This new visa will set the wealthy back around $5million per application.
The program will not give buyers American citizenship straight away.
Gold visa recipients will be lawful residents of the US and will have the right to work towards citizenship.
Typical green card holders must spend five years in the US before they can apply for a US passport.
It is not clear if this timeline will be different for Trump’s new visa holders.
Has the US previously had a similar visa?
EB-5 visas are open to foreign nationals who invest $1million in an American business that employs at least 10 people.
This path, which was introduced in 1990, gave these rich internationals green cards and the eventual route to citizenship.
The EB-5 has a limit of 10,000 visas per year for people who “make the necessary investment in a commercial enterprise in the United States”.
Howard Lutnick, Secretary of Commerce, explained that the Trump administration intends to end the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program and “replace it with the Trump gold card.”
He described the EB-5 program as “full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud,” adding, “It was a way to get a green card that was low priced.”
