Trump Gold Card: US President Unveils $1 Million Visa Program For US Residency

US President Donald Trump announced the 'The Trump Gold Card' visa program with fees set at $1 million for individuals and $2 million for corporations.

In a post on the social media platform, Truth Social, Trump said that he expects this card to generate $100 billion for the US economy 'very quickly'.

"For far too long, we have had millions of illegal aliens pouring into our country, and our Immigration System was broken. It is beyond time that the American People, and American Taxpayers, are benefitting from our LEGAL Immigration System," he added.

The US President also announced that the card could be purchased at trumpcard.gov.

United States Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, noted that through the gold card plan, the US will only allow "extraordinary people at the very top" to come to the US who can create business and jobs for Americans.

Under the Gold Card programme, individuals who can pay $1 million to the US Treasury, or $2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, will get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card in the country.

“We're taking in hundreds of billions of dollars. The Gold Card will be taking in hundreds of billions of dollars, and companies will be able to keep some people they need. They need people of expertise, great expertise. I think it's going to be a fantastic thing, and we're going to take that money and we're going to reduce taxes, we're going to reduce debt,” Trump said.

The US President also signed a sweeping proclamation imposing a new $100,000 annual fee for H-1B visa applications—a big shift in U.S. skilled worker immigration policy aimed at curbing abuse and prioritising highly skilled professionals over mass recruitment by outsourcing firms.

When asked if the new $100,000 fee will apply to the H1-B visa holders already in the country, to renewals or to those applying for the first time from abroad, Lutnick said, “Renewals, first times, the company needs to decide. Is that person valuable enough to have $100,000 a year payment to the government, or they should head home and they should go hire an American."