On September 19, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that has sent ripples through the U.S. immigration landscape: the creation of the so-called "Trump Gold Card" visa program. Framed as a bold effort to attract wealth and bolster American industry, the initiative offers a fast-track to permanent residency for those willing and able to make a significant financial contribution to the country. At the same time, the administration has tightened other immigration channels, most notably by imposing a hefty new fee on the popular H-1B visa program.
According to Axios and Fox News, the Gold Card program is overseen by the Secretary of Commerce in coordination with the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security. Its premise is simple but unprecedented: individuals who make an unrestricted $1 million gift to the U.S. Department of Commerce become eligible for an expedited immigrant visa process. Corporations can sponsor individuals for the card with a $2 million contribution. The program is designed, as President Trump put it in a Truth Social post, to ensure that "the American People, and American Taxpayers, are benefiting from our LEGAL Immigration System."
The Gold Card itself is a gilded piece of plastic, emblazoned with the president’s portrait, the Statue of Liberty, and the American flag. The official government website, trumpcard.gov, boasts the card's "exclusive privileges" and invites applicants to submit their documents and pay a nonrefundable processing fee. Once the paperwork is in, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services launches an accelerated background check. If all goes well, recipients are granted lawful permanent resident status—essentially a green card—under the EB-1 or EB-2 visa categories, which have traditionally been reserved for individuals of "exceptional ability" in business, science, or the arts.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who has become the public face of the rollout, told reporters that the administration expects to issue around 80,000 Gold Cards, though the program is still in the "implementation phase." Lutnick said, "You can prove exceptional value for the United States of America by contributing $1 million to the United States of America. That's a pretty good expectation that they're highly valuable." He also noted that applicants must pay a $15,000 vetting fee for background checks conducted by the State Department and Department of Homeland Security. Once approved, Gold Card holders are considered lawful permanent residents and are subject to the same global tax obligations as other green card holders.
The administration has not stopped there. According to Newsweek and The Washington Post, a "Trump Platinum Card" is in the works. This next-level option would cost $5 million and allow recipients to stay in the U.S. for up to 270 days a year without having to pay taxes on income earned abroad. Unlike the Gold Card, the Platinum Card would not offer a pathway to citizenship and would require Congressional approval before it could be implemented. An online waiting list for the Platinum Card has already been established, with Commerce Secretary Lutnick hinting it could become available within weeks.
The Gold Card program is meant to replace the existing EB-1 and EB-2 visas, which have long provided green cards to individuals with "exceptional ability" in their fields. "In less than a month, the other visa green card categories are likely to be suspended, and this will be the model that people can come into the country," Lutnick told Axios. For supporters, the move is a pragmatic way to raise revenue and attract high-value immigrants. President Trump himself predicted, "We anticipate THE TRUMP GOLD CARD will generate well over $100 Billion Dollars very quickly. This money will be used for reducing Taxes, Pro Growth Projects, and paying down our Debt."
Yet the program is not without its critics and complications. Legal experts warn that allowing people to "skip the line" with a large payment could draw lawsuits, especially as the program must still comply with existing numerical caps and other immigration laws. All applicants are subject to public safety and national security screening, and the administration has reserved the right to revoke Gold Card status if risks are identified. The unrestricted gifts from applicants are deposited into a special U.S. Treasury fund, earmarked for promoting commerce and industry.
Meanwhile, the administration has cracked down on other immigration pathways. On the same day as the Gold Card announcement, President Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applicants. The H-1B program, established in 1990, allows U.S. companies—especially in the tech sector—to hire skilled foreign workers for up to six years. According to USCIS data cited by The Washington Post, companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Meta, and Apple have been among the largest users of the program, with Amazon alone having more than 10,000 H-1B beneficiaries.
The new fee, which could be charged annually for up to six years, marks a dramatic increase from the previous cost of several thousand dollars per application. The White House justified the move by claiming that "systemic abuse" of the program has "undermined both our economic and national security." Commerce Secretary Lutnick commented that the fee is intended to discourage overreliance on foreign workers. Critics, however, argue that the change will make it much harder for U.S. companies—especially those in critical STEM fields—to find the talent they need. Supporters of the H-1B program point out that employers are already required to pay H-1B recipients the same wages as similarly qualified U.S. workers.
When asked how he thinks tech companies will react to the new H-1B fee, President Trump expressed optimism: "I think they're going to be very happy. And we're going to be able to keep people in our country that are going to be very productive people, and in many cases, these companies are going to pay a lot of money for that, and they're very happy about it." Whether this prediction holds true remains to be seen, as the policy is likely to face both legal and practical challenges.
The Gold Card initiative is emblematic of the Trump administration’s broader approach to immigration: tightening traditional channels, slashing humanitarian programs, and simultaneously creating new, high-cost pathways that monetize access to the American dream. For now, the world watches as the U.S. tests whether selling residency to the highest bidder will truly benefit American taxpayers—or simply change the face of immigration for good.
