Trump Unveils $5M 'Gold Card' Visa
The Facts
- US Pres. Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a new "gold card" visa program that would provide wealthy foreigners a path to US citizenship for $5M. This would replace the existing EB-5 investor visa program which currently requires investments of $1.05M or $800K in targeted employment areas.
- Trump said the program would begin within two weeks. Additionally, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick criticized the EB-5 program as being "full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud," while emphasizing that gold card applicants would undergo vetting.
- The Homeland Security Department's most recent statistics showed that the EB-5 program, created by Congress in 1990, issued approximately 8K visas in the 12-month period ending Sept. 30, 2022.
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The Spin
Pro-Trump narrative
The gold card program is a strategic approach to attract high-net-worth individuals who will contribute significantly to the US economy through substantial investments, tax payments, and job creation. Meanwhile, there will be stronger vetting procedures to prevent fraud and ensure quality applicants rather than the current EB-5 program. This is a winning idea from President Trump.
Anti-Trump narrative
This program creates a discriminatory two-tier immigration system that favors the wealthy while ignoring hardworking immigrants, potentially opening doors for money laundering and corruption. Trump essentially wants to sell American citizenship to the highest bidder without proper congressional oversight.
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