• Trump's proposed $5 million "gold card" visa will replace the EB-5 investor visa program within two weeks, offering an immediate pathway to citizenship without job creation requirements.
  • The new visa primarily benefits India's super-rich, as it costs over five times more than the current EB-5 program but eliminates backlog issues that plague traditional immigration pathways.
  • Alternative options for Indians include applying for the current EB-5 program before changes take effect, pursuing O-1 visas for exceptional abilities, L-1 visas for executives, or continuing on the H-1B to EB-2/EB-3 route.

President Donald Trump has announced plans to introduce a "gold card" visa with a path to citizenship priced at $5 million, replacing the 35-year-old EB-5 investor visa program.

The initiative has sparked significant concerns among Indian nationals currently waiting in the lengthy green card backlog.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick revealed that the "Trump Gold Card" would replace EB-5 visas within two weeks.

The current EB-5 program, established by Congress in 1990 to encourage foreign investment, requires approximately $800,000 to $1.05 million investment in a company that employs at least ten people.

According to Lutnick, the new gold card—which is essentially a green card granting permanent legal residency—aims to increase the investment threshold while eliminating what he described as "fraud and nonsense" prevalent in the current EB-5 program.

Like other green cards, it would provide a pathway to citizenship. However, the key differences between the programs are substantial.

The EB-5 visa requires creating at least 10 US jobs and offers a path to citizenship in 5-7 years with a significant backlog for Indians.

The proposed gold card, on the other hand, requires no job creation, provides an immediate citizenship pathway, and promises no backlog with its direct purchase option.

For India's wealthiest individuals, the gold card could be transformative—offering a much faster and simpler route to US residency compared to the EB-5 visa or the lengthy H-1B to green card process.

However, the $5 million price tag—more than five times higher than the current EB-5 requirement—means this option will be accessible only to India's super-rich.

Indians currently on H-1B or EB-2/EB-3 visas could technically apply for the gold card visa if they can afford the investment.

However, most will need to consider alternatives such as the current EB-5 program (if applied for before the change), O-1 visas for individuals with exceptional abilities, L-1 visas for business executives, or continuing on the traditional H-1B to EB-2/EB-3 pathway despite its notorious decades-long wait times for Indian nationals.

Trump made no mention of job creation requirements for the new visa. Moreover, while EB-5 visas are capped, the President suggested the government could potentially sell up to 10 million "gold cards" to help reduce the federal deficit, stating it "could be great, maybe it will be fantastic."

Edited By Annette George