US President Donald Trump has come up with a new investor visa named the ‘gold card’ that promises a straight road to US citizenship for those ready to invest $5 million. This will be a replacement for the old EB-5 investor visa that has been operating since 1990. The plan aims to entice high-net-worth individuals who are capable of injecting serious funds into the US economy.
What Is The ‘Gold Card’ Visa?
The ‘gold card’ visa is a high-value residence-by-investment scheme targeting wealthy individuals. While the EB-5 visa called for at least a $1 million investment and the creation of 10 jobs, the new ‘gold card’ visa dispenses with the job creation requirement but more than doubles the financial bar to $5 million.
Trump has referred to the initiative as a means of attracting ‘wealthy and successful’ people who will ‘spend a lot of money, pay taxes, and hire a lot of people.’
Trade Secretary Howard Lutnick went on to clarify that the ‘gold card’ is like a green card that offers an accelerated path to US citizenship for individuals meeting the investment test.
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Why Replace The EB-5 Visa?
The EB-5 program was originally created to lure foreign investment and increase employment generation in the US. The programme has been faulted over the years by fraud and misappropriation of funds. In 2021, the Congressional Research Service reported that the program was risky, such as failure to properly verify the sources of investment capital.
Trump’s ‘gold card’ visa aims to address these concerns by raising the threshold of investment and dropping the job creation requirement.
Lutnick said that this plan will curb fraudulent activity while ensuring that only real investors profit from the scheme.
Global Comparisons And Economic Impact
Golden Visa schemes are not an American monopoly. Other nations, such as the UK, Canada, Australia, Spain, and Greece, have their own residency-by-investment schemes, where high-net-worth individuals can purchase long-term residence by making financial investments.
These plans have been successful in retaining high-net-worth individuals on their rolls who invest in consumer spending, real estate, and business growth that fuel local economies.
Trump has indicated that the selling of 10 million ‘gold cards’ could trim the US deficit, and therefore the programme is not only an immigration policy but perhaps an economic policy. But critics will argue that prioritising wealth in the immigration process is morally and economically questionable, particularly in terms of accessibility and fairness.
While the ‘gold card’ visa requires no Congressional authorisation, its welcome and acceptability are in question. Sustained interest will undoubtedly be shown by foreign investors to avail themselves of US residence and citizenship under the programme.
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As this policy continues to play out, it will be interesting to see how it defines the future of investor immigration and if it really works in the best interests of the country.
What’s your opinion—should wealth be a key determinant of becoming a citizen?
Cover Image Courtesy: Canva & Wikimedia Commons
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