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On September 19, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 14351, "The Gold Card," directing the U.S. Departments of Commerce, Department of State and Homeland Security to create an expedited immigrant visa process to facilitate the entry of foreign nationals who make an unrestricted financial gift to the U.S. government via the Department of Commerce.
The program is now live and foreign nationals can now apply for the Gold Card Program.
Basic requirements
The first step in the Gold Card process is to pay a nonrefundable processing fee of USD$15,000 to the Department of Homeland Security.
After visa adjudication has taken place, an individual will provide the unrestricted gift of US$1 million (or US$2 million for a corporation) as evidence that the individual will substantially benefit the United States.
Who can apply?
In addition to a foreign national's financial position, a foreign national must also be eligible for lawful permanent resident status – i.e. be admissible to the United States.
USCIS has yet to release any guidance on whether family members can apply, but trumpcard.gov, a website that launched on December 10, 2025, states that family members can be included as part of the initial application. Each family member is subject to an additional US$15,000 Department of Homeland Security processing fee and a US$1-million unrestricted gift.
How long does the process take?
As the program is intended to be an expedited process, it should only take weeks.
Proposed Trump Platinum Card
President Trump has also announced the prospect of a "Trump Platinum Card," which is expected to allow foreign nationals to spend "up to 270 days in the United States without being subject to U.S. taxes on non-U.S. income." The Trump Platinum Card is expected to cost US$5 million.
We will provide more information on the Trump Platinum Card as more details become available.
Please see this recent insight for additional information on the Gold Card visa program.
Anyone wishing to learn more about the program – either from an immigration perspective or as a local business looking to benefit from the addition of new skilled workers – is encouraged to reach out to MLT Aikins lawyer Jessica Jensen or another member of the MLT Aikins immigration team.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
