Trump's $5 million fast pass toward U.S. citizenship has gone live
Trump wants wealthy foreigners to invest in the U.S. and help pay off the swelling national debt. Details on the program remain scarce
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The Trump administration launched a new website on Thursday aimed at attracting foreign nationals to apply for a fast-track to U.S. citizenship — if they have gobs of cash.
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The website for the "gold card" included a portal for interested applicants to submit their name, region of origin, email, and family status. There's an image of a gold card with President Donald Trump's stern face on it, flanked by the Statue of Liberty and a bald eagle.
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Trump has expressed enthusiasm for wealthy foreigners to invest in the U.S. and help pay off the swelling national debt.
He has said it would provide permanent residency status, similar to a green card.
"Wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card," Trump said in February. "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."
The Trump Card
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said at the time the program was intended to replace the EB-5 visa, a similar route to citizenship for foreign investors who invest at least $500,000 and generate at least 10 jobs . Eliminating that visa program might require Congress to sign off on it since it was renewed in 2022.
Details of the so-called gold card program remain scarce, and it still may face legal challenges.