Donald Trump has introduced the introduction of a brand new ‘gold card’ program, permitting rich immigrants to buy a pathway to US citizenship for $5 million. The initiative is about to switch the present EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program, which has been a staple of employment-based immigration since 1990.
“We’re going to be promoting a gold card,” Trump stated as he signed government orders alongside Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick within the Oval Workplace on Tuesday. “We’re going to be placing a worth on that card of about $5 million.”
“It should provide you with inexperienced card privileges, plus it may be a path to (American) citizenship, and rich folks can be coming into our nation by shopping for this card.”
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The president defined that the Gold Card would grant immigrants inexperienced card privileges whereas serving as a direct path to American citizenship. “The folks that may pay $5 million, they will create jobs,” Trump emphasised. “It should promote like loopy. It is a cut price.”
The sharp improve in funding necessities has raised issues amongst Indian immigrants, lots of whom have been caught within the Inexperienced Card backlog as a result of per-country visa cap.
How will the Gold Card have an effect on Indian immigrants?
“The Gold Card introduced by President Trump for $5 million is meant to switch the EB-5 program. The funding quantity drastically will increase from $800k/$1.05 million to $5 million,” Rahul Menon, an Indian-origin visa podcaster, informed Hindustan Instances.
“It was a steep quantity for Indian visa holders to start with, and now might be subsequent to unattainable for almost all of the parents caught within the Inexperienced Card backlog.”
Menon additionally identified that such a drastic coverage change would possible require Congressional approval. “From a authorized standpoint, this must be handed by Congress just like the EB 5 reform invoice that was handed in 2022 by the Biden administration, the place they elevated funding quantities to $800k/1.05 million,” he stated.
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How does the Gold Card examine to the EB-5 program?
Underneath the present system, immigrants might safe a inexperienced card by investing $800,000 to $1.05 million, relying on whether or not the funding was in a high-unemployment or rural space. The Biden administration had elevated these funding thresholds as a part of the 2022 EB-5 Reform Invoice.
With Trump’s proposed shift, the required funding jumps drastically to $5 million, making it more difficult for middle-income traders, notably from nations like India, to qualify.
