The Trump administration officially launched the Trump Gold Card visa program on Wednesday, offering a costly pathway for non-US citizens to obtain expedited residency in the US.
The Trumpcard.gov website, complete with an “Apply Now” button, allows interested applicants to pay a $15,000 fee to the Department of Homeland Security for accelerated processing, according to Reuters.
After passing a background check, applicants must then make a one million dollar “contribution”—also referred to on the website as a “gift”—to receive the visa, similar to a “green card,” which allows them to live and work in the US.
“It’s basically a permanent resident card, but it’s much better, much stronger, and the pathway is much stronger,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
“The pathway is very important. They have to be great people”.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that about 10,000 people had already signed up for the Trump Gold Card during the pre-registration period, and he expected many more to join.
In a brief interview with Reuters, Lutnick added, “I expect that over time we will sell thousands of these cards and raise billions of dollars.”
Lutnick said the Gold Card program would bring people to the US who would contribute to the prosperity of the economy.
He contrasted this with “ordinary” green card holders, who he claimed earn less than the average American income and are more likely to receive public assistance or have family members who do.
Lutnick offered no evidence to support this claim.
The Trump administration pursued a broad crackdown on immigration, deporting hundreds of thousands of people who were in the country illegally and implementing measures to discourage legal immigration.
The Gold Card program is Trump’s version of balancing that, designed to generate revenue for the US Treasury in much the same way the president – a former New York businessman and reality TV host – claims his tariff program has done so.
Lutenik noted that there is a corporate version of the Gold Card that allows companies to obtain expedited visas for employees who want to work in the US, in exchange for a two million dollar contribution per employee.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
