What Is the Trump Gold Card? The Expedited New U.S. Visa Program Explained
Key Facts
- The Trump Gold Card is a fast-track U.S. immigration pathway announced by the Trump Administration on December 10, 2025 aimed at high-net-worth individuals and corporate sponsors.
- It requires a $15,000 processing fee and a $1 million donation to the United States for individual applicants, or a $2 million contribution per sponsored employee for corporations.
- The program is intended to provide expedited access to lawful permanent residency (green card equivalent) through existing EB-1 or EB-2 immigration categories.
Background: What Is the Trump Gold Card?
The Trump Gold Card is a newly announced U.S. immigration initiative that proposes a faster path to permanent residency (a Green Card) for certain foreign nationals and companies willing to make a large direct financial contribution to the U.S. government.
The program was announced by the Trump administration in December 2025, following an executive order issued earlier in September.
According to administration statements, the program is intended to:
- Attract global talent and capital to the U.S.
- Speed up immigration processing for high-net-worth individuals
- Replace or simplify aspects of the older EB-5 investor visa program
How it Works
Not a Completely New Visa Category
From a legal perspective, the Trump Gold Card is not a standalone visa. Instead, it relies on existing employment-based immigrant visa categories:
- EB-1 (extraordinary ability or priority workers)
- EB-2 (advanced degree professionals or national interest waiver applicants)
What’s different? Under the Gold Card framework, applicants may rely in significant part on a financial contribution as supporting evidence, rather than solely on traditional employment history or job-creation criteria typically required under these categories. Because the program operates within existing EB-1 and EB-2 categories, applicants may still be subject to annual visa caps and country-based backlogs.
Cost and Application Process
While details may continue to evolve, the program generally follows these steps:
- Initial Processing Fee: Applicants first pay a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee to the Department of Homeland Security.
- Background and Admissibility Checks: Applicants undergo standard vetting, including security, criminal, and immigration admissibility reviews by DHS and related agencies.
- Financial Contribution: Once preliminarily cleared, individual applicants make a $1 million contribution to the U.S. government.Corporate sponsors must contribute $2 million per sponsored employee.
- Residency Status: If approved, applicants receive lawful permanent resident status (a Green Card) allowing them to live and work anywhere in the United States.
Spouses and qualifying children may also be eligible for derivative status, subject to additional requirements and fees.
Why There’s Uncertainty
Despite its official launch, the Trump Gold Card remains legally and practically uncertain.
Key concerns include:
- U.S. visa programs are typically created by Congress, not by executive order
- Legal experts have questioned whether an administration can lawfully substitute payment for statutory visa requirements
- The program may be challenged in court if it is seen as stretching or sidestepping existing immigration laws
Because of these uncertainties, applicants may face financial and immigration risk, especially given the size of the required contributions.
Explore Your Options With Ellis
The Trump Gold Card is new and still developing, which means the rules, requirements, and risks are not fully settled.
Before moving forward, it’s important to understand:
- Whether you are likely to qualify under EB-1 or EB-2 standards
- How the Trump Gold Card compares to existing options like EB-1, EB-2, or EB-5 based on your background
- What financial and immigration risks may exist if the program changes
Ellis helps individuals and companies get clarity on their immigration options and assess next steps. Get in touch with Ellis today.