United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to sell $5m “gold card” resident permits to foreigners – a programme that would also come with a route to citizenship.
The high-dollar visa would replace the US’s current “EB-5” immigrant investor visa for foreign job-creators, which Trump’s commerce secretary has slammed as full of “nonsense” and “fraud”.
“You have a green card, this is a gold card,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office Tuesday. Permanent residents who are not citizens in the US are known as “green card” holders.
“It’s going to give you green card privileges plus it’s going to be a route to (American) citizenship,” the president added.
What is the EB-5 visa program and why is Trump ending it?
Launched in 1990, EB-5 visas are open to foreigners who invest about $1m in a company employing at least 10 people. They get immediate green cards – a pathway to eventual citizenship – in exchange. Applicants for green cards otherwise usually have to wait anywhere between several months, and often, several years to get permanent residency.
The EB-5 programme is capped at 10,000 visas per year, with 3,000 set aside for those investing in high-unemployment areas, according to the US State Department.
The purpose of the EB-5 visa is to “stimulate the US economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors”, says the US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
However, Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the programme is being exploited and is priced too low.
“The EB-5 program … it was full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud, and it was a way to get a green card that was low-price. So the president said, rather than having this sort of ridiculous EB-5 program, we’re going to end the EB-5 program,” said Lutnick.
In 2021, the US Government Accountability Office found that EB-5 visas carry significant fraud risks, particularly due to challenges in tracing the origins of applicants’ funds and potential perceptions of favouritism.
Who could qualify for a ‘gold visa’?
“It’ll be people with money,” Trump said, without noting any job-creation requirements.
However, all applicants will undergo thorough vetting to ensure they are “wonderful, world-class global citizens”, according to Lutnick.
When asked if wealthy Russians could qualify, Trump replied, “Possibly. I know some Russian oligarchs who are very nice people.”
There doesn’t seem to be a clear cap on the programme, with Trump suggesting the government could sell 10 million visas to help reduce the national deficit.
The programme would come as Trump’s administration continues a sweeping crackdown on undocumented immigrants, whom Trump has pledged to deport en masse.
How much will it cost – and what would be the benefits?
About $5m per application.
This would make it “the most expensive golden visa option in the world,” according to Kristin Surak, associate professor of political sociology at the London School of Economics.
“But there will still be demand for this if the pathway is fast and smooth,” Surak told Al Jazeera. “Strangely, Trump is massively underselling what the US has to offer.”
Current green card holders – including those who are beneficiaries of the EB-5 initiative – typically have to live as lawful permanent residents in the US for five years before they become eligible for citizenship.
It is unclear whether gold card visa holders will have to wait less for citizenship.
Trump said his administration would offer more details in two weeks, when the visas will start going on sale.
Do other countries have similar initiatives?
Yes, so-called “golden visas” are common around the world, including in European Union states like Spain and Greece. In some countries, such as Malta, Egypt and Jordan, foreign applicants can even obtain citizenship directly through investment. These “golden passport” programmes are most competitive in the Caribbean, with countries like Dominica, Granada and St. Kitts and Nevis setting their fees as low as $200,000-$300,000.
While a US gold card would likely be in high demand, it may come with the unique drawback of exposing holders to US taxes, “no matter where they are in the world and no matter where their assets are”, said Surak.
“However, most very wealthy people will structure their wealth so that they will not get hit by them,” she added.
Why are golden visas controversial?
Generally, golden visa programmes are controversial because they can attract individuals seeking to use them for money laundering or fraud, and they can also drive up housing costs in major cities.
These concerns have led several European countries, including the UK, the Netherlands and Greece, to roll back their golden visa programmes in recent years, according to Bloomberg.
Trump’s golden visa plan could face even more controversy if he tries to push it through without Congressional approval, which he claims is unnecessary.
Congress is responsible for determining citizenship qualifications and, in the past, authorised the EB-5 programme that Trump says he intends to end.
