Wealthy foreign nationals eyeing permanent U.S. residency may soon be able to apply under a new $5 million visa scheme, as early as next week. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed that registration for the much-anticipated “gold card” visa, first proposed by former President Donald Trump, is expected to open shortly via a new government website called trumpcard.gov, according to CNN. The announcement was made at Axios’ “Building the Future” event in Washington, DC.
“I expect there will be a website up called ‘Trump card dot gov’ in about a week,” Lutnick said. “The details of that will come soon after, but people can start to register.”
The new visa plan, first introduced by former President Donald Trump in February, would offer permanent residency to foreign nationals in exchange for a $5 million investment. It promises green card privileges and a pathway to citizenship in exchange for a substantial investment, replacing the existing EB-5 visa framework, which requires either a $1.8 million investment or $900,000 in designated high-unemployment areas.
“We’re going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million and that’s going to give you green card privileges, plus it’s going to be a route to citizenship,” Trump said from the Oval Office earlier this year. “Wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card.”
Lutnick said interest is already strong. “Basically, everyone I meet who is not an American is going to want to buy this card if they have the fiscal capacity,” he said, referring to conversations he had during a recent visit to the Middle East.
Beyond immigration, Lutnick touted the plan as a revenue generator. “These are going to be great people who are going to come and bring businesses and opportunity to America, and they’re going to pay $5 million,” he said. “If there are 200,000 people who pay, that’s a trillion dollars. That pays for everything.”
But the immigration experts have pointed out that a new visa category cannot be created without Congressional approval, raising questions about the program’s legal viability. Still, the administration seems optimistic, promising more details in the coming weeks.
