Overview
Donald Trump is now literally selling a fast track to America. His new Trump Gold Card program lets wealthy foreigners buy expedited U.S. residency for a $1 million “gift” to the government, on top of a $15,000 processing fee, with a corporate option costing $2 million per sponsored worker.
The scheme lands as his administration tries to deport record numbers of migrants and squeezes traditional skills-based visas. The real story is whether the U.S. is quietly swapping its identity as a nation of strivers and refugees for a gated community where the rich jump the line and everyone else faces the crackdown.
Key Indicators
People Involved
Organizations Involved
Commerce is Trump’s unlikely new immigration gatekeeper, entrusted with cashing seven‑figure checks for visas.
DHS is simultaneously Trump’s deportation hammer and the background-check gatekeeper for million‑dollar migrants.
A leading seller of global golden visas, quick to market Trump’s Gold Card to the ultra-wealthy.
Timeline
-
Lawyers warn Gold Card may violate immigration law
LegalCoverage from Washington and political outlets notes that Trump created Gold Cards via executive order by reinterpreting existing EB‑1 and EB‑2 visas. Legal scholars and immigrant-rights groups argue he may have overstepped by inventing a de facto new category without Congress, foreshadowing court challenges.
-
Trump Gold Card program officially goes live
LaunchThe administration opens Trumpcard.gov for applications, charging a $15,000 processing fee and promising expedited residency for those who pass background checks and then contribute $1 million. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick touts 10,000 pre‑registrations and forecasts billions in revenue.
-
Gold Card launch teased as deportations climb
ContextOn the eve of launch, coverage highlights a planned ‘Trump Platinum Card’ for $5 million tax‑free stays and notes that Trump’s broader crackdown has already deported well over 120,000 people, with Mexico alone receiving more than 150,000 migrants since January.
-
Trump slashes Gold Card price; demand surges among the ultra‑rich
EconomicTrump reduces the Gold Card price from $5 million to $1 million and adds a $100,000 H‑1B fee. Wealth advisors tell CNBC that clients are lining up, making it one of the most sought‑after golden visas in the world.
-
Durbin brands Gold Card an ‘illegal pay-to-play scheme’
Political ReactionSenate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin issues a statement slamming the Gold Card as grift that invites oligarchs and cartel bosses while undermining a fair immigration system, signaling an emerging legal and political fight in Congress.
-
Trump signs Gold Card executive order, sets $1 million price
LegalTrump signs an executive order creating the Gold Card program, directing Commerce, State, and Homeland Security to treat a $1 million individual ‘gift’ or $2 million corporate ‘gift’ as evidence of extraordinary ability under existing EB‑1 and EB‑2 visa categories, and to implement the system within 90 days.
-
Immigration crackdown triggers labor shortages
ContextReporting from U.S. factories shows Trump’s intensified deportations and visa cancellations causing severe labor shortages and overtime burnout, highlighting a growing gap between business needs and his hard-line enforcement agenda.
-
Experts call early Gold Card plan ‘marketing without law’
AnalysisA Forbes analysis concludes the $5 million Gold Card is still just a concept and warns that Congress would have to change immigration and tax laws, calling the math and legal foundation shaky.
-
Global visa firms rush to market Trump’s idea
ReactionHenley & Partners, a major citizenship‑by‑investment firm, publicly welcomes the proposed $5 million Gold Card and begins pitching it as a future option for high‑net‑worth clients, signaling strong demand from the global rich even before any law or program exists.
-
Trump floats $5 million ‘Gold Card’ to replace EB‑5 visas
Policy ProposalIn an Oval Office pitch, Trump proposes selling $5 million Gold Cards to wealthy foreigners as a new path to residency, promising to scrap the EB‑5 investor visa program it would replace. Immigration experts and lawyers immediately question whether he can do this without Congress.
Scenarios
Federal Courts Freeze Gold Card, Say Trump Can’t Sell Visas by Decree
Discussed by: Washington Post legal analysts, immigration lawyers quoted by AP and Reuters, progressive advocacy groups
Several states, business groups worried about money-laundering risks, and immigrant-rights organizations sue, arguing the executive order effectively creates a new visa class that only Congress can authorize. A district judge issues a preliminary injunction, citing past rulings that blocked Trump’s travel bans and birthright-citizenship order, and higher courts narrow or halt the program while litigation drags on. Gold Card applicants are left in limbo, and Trump uses the court fight as a campaign talking point.
Gold Card Survives Challenges and Becomes the World’s Hottest Golden Visa
Discussed by: CNBC wealth coverage, investment-migration firms, pro-business commentators close to the administration
Courts accept the administration’s argument that it is merely fast‑tracking existing EB‑1 and EB‑2 categories and that using large ‘gifts’ as evidence of extraordinary ability is within agency discretion. With 10,000 early sign‑ups and strong interest from wealthy families in Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, Gold Cards quickly raise several billion dollars. Despite bad optics, Congress remains gridlocked, and the program becomes an established feature of America’s immigration system—and a model for a future, even pricier Platinum Card.
Scandal Over Oligarch Money Forces Congress to Kill Gold Card Experiment
Discussed by: Democratic lawmakers like Dick Durbin, watchdog groups, some national-security commentators
Investigations reveal that early Gold Card recipients include politically connected oligarchs from sanctioned countries or figures tied to corruption probes. Congressional hearings expose weak anti‑money‑laundering vetting and internal emails showing political pressure to approve controversial applicants. Public backlash over ‘visas for kleptocrats’ unites security hawks and progressives, and Congress moves to amend immigration law—reinstating a stricter, more transparent investor visa program with caps, disclosure rules, and far less presidential discretion.
Historical Context
The EB‑5 Immigrant Investor Visa and Its Scandals
1990–2020sWhat Happened
The EB‑5 program let foreigners obtain green cards by investing $500,000–$1 million in U.S. projects that created jobs. Over time it attracted billions in capital but also high‑profile fraud cases, including failed real estate projects and allegations that well-connected developers gamed the system.
Outcome
Short term: Investigations and media scandals led to periodic crackdowns, higher investment thresholds, and efforts to tighten oversight.
Long term: EB‑5 became a cautionary tale about selling residency: politically explosive when it appears to favor the wealthy and invites abuse.
Why It's Relevant
Gold Cards raise the same questions as EB‑5—who really benefits when the U.S. trades immigration rights for cash, and can regulators police the line between investment and corruption?
Britain’s ‘Golden Visa’ and the Oligarch Backlash
2008–2022What Happened
The UK’s Tier 1 Investor visa offered residency to foreigners investing at least £2 million, drawing inflows from Russian, Chinese, and Middle Eastern elites. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and mounting money‑laundering concerns, the government reviewed thousands of cases and scrapped the route altogether.
Outcome
Short term: London faced criticism for having served as a safe haven for dirty money and politically exposed oligarchs.
Long term: Britain’s reversal highlighted the security and reputational risks of golden visas, spurring EU crackdowns on similar schemes.
Why It's Relevant
Trump’s Gold Card invites the same vulnerability: a lucrative program that looks attractive now but could be dismantled overnight if it becomes synonymous with oligarch cash and national-security blind spots.
Trump’s 2017 Travel Ban and Washington v. Trump
2017What Happened
Soon after his first inauguration, Trump signed an executive order banning entry from several Muslim‑majority countries. Chaos at airports and immediate lawsuits led a federal court to block enforcement; the administration repeatedly rewrote the order before a narrower version survived at the Supreme Court.
Outcome
Short term: Courts showed a willingness to swiftly check overbroad immigration orders, forcing policy revisions.
Long term: The episode established a playbook for challenging Trump’s immigration actions and a record of judicial skepticism toward unilateral overreach.
Why It's Relevant
The travel-ban fight is the main precedent Gold Card opponents will look to as they argue that Trump can’t rewrite core parts of immigration law by executive order alone.