US President Donald Trump has announced his intention to introduce a Gold Card. This type of visa will allow foreigners to obtain permanent residency in the United States in exchange for five million dollars. The Gold Card will replace the current EB-5 investor visa.
US Green Card Variant
The Gold Card is a variant of the current US Green Card, a permanent residence permit for the United States. The Green Card allows you to live and work in the country. There are several types of Green Card. For example, there is a Green Card for immediate family members of US citizens or for immediate family members of persons already residing in the US with a Green Card. People who wish to work in the United States can apply for a Green Card. Also employees of international organisations, religious workers and asylum seekers are sometimes eligible for a Green Card.
Depending on the type of Green Card, applicants must meet different requirements. There are three types of Green Card that allow work in the United States. The first type is for so-called first preference immigrant workers. These include individuals with exceptional skills, high-level researchers and managers of multinational companies. The second category, second preference immigrant workers consists of those in positions requiring at least a Master's degree. The third category, third preference immigrant workers, includes those with at least two years of education or work experience. In addition, some 55,000 Green Cards are awarded by lottery each year.
The Gold Card for the wealthy
With the Gold Card, the United States is trying to attract wealthy foreigners who wish to obtain residency in the country. The Gold Card will probably cost five million US dollars. Those who do not have immediate family members in the US or do not plan to work in the US will also be eligible for the US Gold Card.
The Gold Card concept is not new. Around the world, several countries offer visas or residence permits for foreign investors. These residence permits are often referred to as Golden Visas. The US Gold Card would be one of the most expensive visa programmes in the world. However, the US government expects the visa to attract a lot of interest from the wealthy. Donald Trump expects to issue between one and ten million Gold Cards. He expects the new visa to earn the US $5 billion.
The EB-5 visa will be replaced
Currently, the United States already offers a special type of visa for foreign investors, the EB-5 visa. This type of visa was introduced by the US Department of Immigration in 1990 to boost the US economy and create more jobs. The EB-5 visa allows individuals who invest in a US company to obtain permanent residency. They must create at least 10 full-time jobs with their investment or ensure that 10 jobs are preserved for US workers. The minimum investment amount for the EB-5 visa is USD 1,050,000. For regions with high unemployment, the minimum is USD 80,000.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has confirmed that the EB-5 visa will be abolished with the introduction of the Gold Card. According to Lutnick, there was too much fraud in EB-5 visa applications and the price to obtain residency on an EB-5 visa was too low. The cost of the new Gold Card, at $5 million, is significantly higher than the minimum amount that must be invested to obtain an EB-5 visa.