“Trump Gold Card” visas are officially on sale. Experts throw cold water: economic benefits should be “put a question mark”

The Zhitong Finance App learned that US President Trump announced on Wednesday that the US government will officially accept applications for the “Trump Gold Card” visa program starting the same day. The plan requires individuals to pay $1 million and businesses to pay $2 million to obtain an individual's US residency status and rapid naturalization path. Additionally, applicants are required to pay an additional $15,000 in processing and review fees. However, experts have questioned its effectiveness.

In September, Trump signed an executive order officially announcing the project. The program is intended to replace the EB-5 investment immigration program, which requires a minimum investment of $1.8 million in the US or more of $900,000 in economically difficult regions.

Trump said the proceeds, which he estimates are up to several billion dollars, will go directly to the US Treasury to “do positive things for the country.”

US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said, “We need to bring in the best people. We want to help them develop America and build America. Why bring in people who are below average? It just doesn't make sense.”

However, economic experts are still skeptical about how this type of visa will promote economic development.

Trump's Gold Card was established by executive order in September of this year, which means it has yet to be approved by Congress, causing some experts to question how the visa will fit into the existing immigration system and whether the plan requires further action by Congress.

Natalia Polukhtin, founder and practicing attorney at Global Practice, a boutique US immigration law firm specializing in investment immigration, said, “The Gold Card Program aims to adjust the existing immigration category to a new program without amending the law. In short: Congress needs to amend existing laws to open up a new path of naturalization. However, the plan was not approved by Congress. It simply modifies existing policies and divides two separate categories within the existing immigration program: EB-1A 'Outstanding Talent' and EB-2-NIW 'National Interest Exemption'.”

Under the EB-5 program, which aims to stimulate the US economy, investors (and their spouses and unmarried children under 21) can apply for legal permanent residency if they make the necessary investments in a US commercial enterprise and plan to create or retain 10 permanent full-time jobs for eligible US workers.

Experts say the Gold Card Program also doesn't fall entirely into this category.

“This project has two key differences from the existing EB-5 program,” said Polukhtin. First, the money invested by Gold Card applicants is not an investment, but a non-refundable donation to the US economy. Second, unlike EB-5, a gold card does not require capital investment in any specific business or industry, or the creation of any jobs for American workers.”

Trump has vigorously promoted these gold visas, saying that they can ensure that the US provides naturalization channels for people at the top, thereby “building the strongest economy in the world.” However, research shows that such Citizenship by Investment (CBI) and Residency by Investment (RBI) programs may not always provide the expected economic benefits.

An International Monetary Fund study found that these investment visa programs can increase government revenue, but generally only apply to small island countries where fees account for a large share of government funding. Furthermore, there is evidence that investment visa programs cause domestic real estate prices to rise. The study found that in countries that introduced investment visa programs, real estate prices rose as much as 3% in the first year.

Some experts believe that a gold card is not the most cost-effective option for investors.

Currently, for regions with high unemployment, the minimum investment for an EB-5 visa is $800,000. In contrast, each individual applying for a Trump Gold Card would pay $1 million.

Nuri Katz, founder of Apex Capital Partners, said, “Currently, about 4,000 people are applying for green cards worth 800,000 dollars. Even if the same number of people were willing to pay more, that would mean that the Treasury would increase its revenue by about 4 billion US dollars every year — for the US government, this amount is just a dime, and it will not ease the debt problem at all, and this is what the project publicly claims.”

It is doubtful whether this will benefit the US economy much, Katz said.