The announcement by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday on the launch of a gold card investor visa programme, for wealthy immigrants, is likely to impact many Indians who are looking at applying for US green cards or permanent residency through the EB-5 visa route.
President Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the new gold card scheme, which would replace the current EB-5 visa programme, would cost around $5 million dollars per applicant.
“We’re going to be selling a gold card. You have a green card. This is a gold card,” the US President told reporters in his Oval Office. He described the new programme as ‘green card privileges plus’ that would offer recipients a route to citizenship in the US and added that he had previewed the programme as ready to launch in two weeks.
“They’ll be wealthy and they’ll be successful, and they’ll be spending a lot of money and paying a lot of taxes and employing a lot of people, and we think it’s going to be extremely successful,” President Trump said about the gold card programme.
In a related announcement, US secretary of commerce Howard Lutnick, who addressed reporters along with the president, said the gold card programme would replace the current EB-5 visa programme.
Ajay Bhutoria, a Silicon Valley based Democrat and advocate for immigration reform, has raised concerns over President Trump’s new ‘gold card’ proposal. “I’ve spent years pushing for immigration reforms that bring fairness and opportunity to the millions of talented, skilled individuals caught in the green card backlog—people who have played by the rules, contributed to our economy, and waited decades for a chance at stability. So, when I hear about these $5 million ‘gold cards’—a new path to citizenship for wealthy foreigners who can pay to create jobs—it raises serious concerns for me,” he said.
He described the announcement as a pay-to-play scheme that sidelines the people who have been the backbone of the US workforce and communities. “The idea that you can buy your way into a green card and citizenship for $5 million, while millions of skilled workers—engineers, doctors, tech experts—languish in a backlog that stretches over 50 years for some, especially from countries like India, is a slap in the face. These are individuals who have already proven their worth, paying taxes, driving innovation, and building lives here. They won’t benefit from this. Instead, we are rolling out a red carpet for the ultra-wealthy, no backlog is required, just a fat check. That’s not sophistication—it is elitism dressed up as policy,” Bhutoria said.
He also added that replacing the EB-5 programme, which at least had a framework for job creation, with the ‘Trump gold card’ felt like a step backward. “It’s not about building a merit-based system—it’s about who can afford the entry fee. We need solutions that clear the backlog, support families, and strengthen our economy inclusively, not auction off citizenship to the highest bidder,” Bhutoria said.
The EB-5, or employment-based fifth preference category, visa is an immigrant investor programme administered by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. It provides a path for eligible investors to get US green cards by investing in new commercial enterprises in the US and creating at least 10 new, full-time jobs for Americans. The minimum investment requirement to qualify under the EB-5 programme is $1,050,000 or $800,000 if the investment is made in a qualifying infrastructure project or targeted employment area. EB-5 applicants have the choice of investing directly or through a larger investor pool via regional centres which are approved by the USCIS.