U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Thursday that only one person has been approved under President Donald Trump’s “Gold Card” visa program, but hundreds of others are awaiting review for the pay-to-enter pathway to U.S. residency.
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Speaking before the House Appropriations Committee, Lutnick said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) oversees applicant vetting and that those applicants have paid $15,000 for what he described as a “rigorous” process. However, he said the program remains in its early stages.
“This is a new program, and they’ve just set it up. They wanted to make sure they did it perfectly, and so we’ve worked through that,” he said. “But it’s a DHS program conducted with rigorous, rigorous vetting.”
Lutnick added that revenue from the program and decisions about its allocation would be left to the Trump administration.
“Its terms are for the betterment of the United States of America,” he said. “It needs to be for commerce and the betterment of the United States of America.”
Launched late last year, the Trump Gold Card program allows foreign nationals to pay $1 million plus a $15,000 processing fee for U.S. residency. Corporations may also participate by contributing $2 million and paying the $15,000 processing fee.
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Modeled after the EB-5 visa program, which began in 1990 to encourage job creation through foreign investment, Lutnick has suggested the Gold Card system could replace EB-5. He emphasized that all applicants would undergo thorough vetting and that revenue raised would help pay down the national debt.
