United States President Donald Trump has said he aims to offer a “gold card” visa that would give residency to foreign investors who have made an investment of US$5 million.
This would replace the EB-5 visa, which provides residency to those who invest US$1.05 million into creating new jobs at a U.S. business.
“We are going to be selling a gold card,” Trump said. “We are going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million.”
“That's going to give you green card privileges. Plus, it's going to be a route to citizenship, and wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card.”
While Trump said his gold card program would enter into effect in two weeks, this would likely need approval from Congress. The current EB-5 visa was set out in the Immigration Act of 1990, and was reauthorised for another five years in 2022.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the expected US$5 million payment for a gold card could be paid directly to the U.S. government, rather than invested into a business.
“They’ll be able to pay $5 million to the US government, go through vetting, of course, going to make sure they are wonderful world class, global citizens,” said Lutnick. “They can invest in America, and we can use that money to reduce our deficit.”
Trump estimated the U.S. could issue over one million gold cards.
Trump similarly said in December that those investing US$1 billion in the U.S. would have regulatory approvals expedited, but the administration has not yet implemented this.
Around US$177.5 billion in foreign direct investment was brought into the U.S. in 2022. This number has declined in recent years, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
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