Trump touts $5 Million 'gold card' visas for the rich

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday revealed plans to sell new "gold card" US residency permits at $5 million (€4.8 million) a pop, replacing a 35-year-old visa for investors.

"We're going to be selling a gold card. You have a green card, this is a gold card. We're going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

Speaking about the target audience, Trump said: "They'll be wealthy and they'll be successful, and they'll be spending a lot of money and paying a lot of taxes and employing a lot of people, and we think it's going to be extremely successful."

The Trump 'gold card'

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick clarified that the new permit — dubbed the 'Trump Gold Card' by reporters — would replace the EB-5 visas in two weeks.

Created in 1990 by Congress, the EB-5 visas aimed at generating foreign investment and were made available to people who would spend $1 million on a US company that employs at least 10 people.

Lutnick said the gold card was ultimately a green card or a permanent residency card, which raised investors' entry price in the US. He said it would do away with fraud and "nonsense" that plagues the EB-5 program, eventually leading to citizenship.

Some 8000 people have used the EB-5 visa to enter the US in the 12-month period ending September 30, 2022, according to government immigration data.

In 2021, a Congressional Research Service report said that the program posed a risk of fraud.

Wealthy Russians would also be able to apply

While all details about the Trump Gold Card were not clear, Trump mused that the program could be made available to Russians as well.

"I know some Russian oligarchs that are very nice people. It's possible," Trump said. "They're not as wealthy as they used to be. I think they can. I think they can afford $5 million."

Trump also said the gold card would not require Congressional approval, despite the determination of qualifications for citizenship falling under the Congress's purview.