Trump suggests 'gold card' for granting US residency to affluent foreigners
The $5M visa is set to take the place of the current investor visa program.
TroibNews 
President Donald Trump has expressed a willingness to attract a specific type of immigrant—wealthy individuals.
On Tuesday, Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick informed reporters that the administration intends to introduce a “gold card” that would grant legal residency to foreigners for a fee of around $5 million. This initiative is set to replace a controversial existing U.S. visa program for overseas investors.
The president and Lutnick described a plan that would enable corporations to acquire U.S. residency, commonly referred to as a “green card,” for highly skilled or educated employees, potentially substituting for certain categories of work visas.
“It's going to be giving you green card privileges plus," Trump stated. He added, “It's gonna be a route to citizenship, and wealthy people will be coming into our country."
During their discussion at the White House, alongside Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, they did not provide specific details about the proposal, nor did they address any legislative actions from Congress, which established the investor visa, known as EB-5, in 1990 and reauthorized it for another five years in 2022.
“Generally speaking, it will be people with money and people that create jobs,” Trump noted.
Lutnick criticized the current EB-5 program as “ridiculous,” explaining that it was originally designed to stimulate the U.S. economy by granting green cards in exchange for investments that create jobs. The existing program mandates a minimum investment of approximately $1 million or $500,000 in certain rural areas or locations with high unemployment rates. Congress has also imposed additional oversight during its reauthorization to combat ongoing issues of fraud and abuse.
The commerce secretary assured that applicants would undergo vetting under the proposed new program.
“We are going to make sure they are wonderful, world class global citizens,” he emphasized. “They can come to America, the president can give them a green card. They can invest in America.“
Ramin Sohrabi contributed to this report for TROIB News
On Tuesday, Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick informed reporters that the administration intends to introduce a “gold card” that would grant legal residency to foreigners for a fee of around $5 million. This initiative is set to replace a controversial existing U.S. visa program for overseas investors.
The president and Lutnick described a plan that would enable corporations to acquire U.S. residency, commonly referred to as a “green card,” for highly skilled or educated employees, potentially substituting for certain categories of work visas.
“It's going to be giving you green card privileges plus," Trump stated. He added, “It's gonna be a route to citizenship, and wealthy people will be coming into our country."
During their discussion at the White House, alongside Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, they did not provide specific details about the proposal, nor did they address any legislative actions from Congress, which established the investor visa, known as EB-5, in 1990 and reauthorized it for another five years in 2022.
“Generally speaking, it will be people with money and people that create jobs,” Trump noted.
Lutnick criticized the current EB-5 program as “ridiculous,” explaining that it was originally designed to stimulate the U.S. economy by granting green cards in exchange for investments that create jobs. The existing program mandates a minimum investment of approximately $1 million or $500,000 in certain rural areas or locations with high unemployment rates. Congress has also imposed additional oversight during its reauthorization to combat ongoing issues of fraud and abuse.
The commerce secretary assured that applicants would undergo vetting under the proposed new program.
“We are going to make sure they are wonderful, world class global citizens,” he emphasized. “They can come to America, the president can give them a green card. They can invest in America.“
Ramin Sohrabi contributed to this report for TROIB News
