Donald Trump announces ‘gold card’ US visas to replace EB-5 visa: What it means for India? Know here

United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced his plans to sell ‘Gold Card’ residency permits, offering immigrants a pathway to American citizenship. He suggested that the Gold Card could replace the EB-5 immigrant investor visa programme in the coming months.

The EB-5 visa is currently one of the clearest routes to permanent US residency, which enables a foreigner to secure a Green Card by investing in US companies. 

Months after Donald Trump ended the US birthright citizenship policy, the EB-5 visa programme emerged as a favourable option for a large number of Indians, especially H-1B visa holders.

The Trump government plans to introduce the Gold Card as an alternative to the EB-5 visa. Let's see how it will impact Indians.

Trump announces 'gold card' US Visa: How much will it cost?

Wealthy foreigners can obtain a US Gold Card, which offers a path to US Citizenship for a $5 million fee.

"We're going to be selling a gold card. You have a green card; this is a gold card. We're going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday.

Donald Trump brings 'gold card' US Visa: How will it impact Indians?

The Gold Card visa will cost about $5 million and be restricted to wealthy people. Many high-net-worth individuals from India who qualify for EB-5 visas to get US green cards may not meet the stricter $5 million requirement for the US Gold Card.

Trump's ‘gold card’ US visa to replace ‘EB-5’ visa

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Tuesday that the EB-5 visa programme was "nonsense" and was “a way to get a low price green card.”

"So the president said, rather than having this sort of ridiculous EB-5 program, we're going to end the EB-5 program. We're going to replace it with the Trump gold card," Lutnick added on Tuesday.

What is EB-5 visa programme?

The current EB-5 investor visa programme grants Green Cards to foreigners if they promise to invest in US businesses.

Congress created the EB-5 programme in 1990 in a bid to boost "the US economy through job creation and capital investment by foreign investors." 

The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme is administered by the US US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

How is ‘gold card’ different from ‘EB-5’ visa?

Gold card would provide peromanent legal residency after its applicants will pay a fee of $5 million. On the other hand, EB-5 applicants were asked to invest a certain amount of money in US companies to be elible for US residence.