Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said there are 250,000 people waiting to obtain President Donald Trump’s “gold card,” a visa that can be sold to immigrants for $5 million and grants them work privileges.
“There are 250,000 people waiting in line now,” Lutnick said in a Fox News interview. “If they’re willing to pay the $5 million, that’s … $1.25 trillion just for that line.”
On Tuesday, Trump announced his plans to create a “gold card” that would modify the EB-5 immigrant visa program. The EB-5 visa requires applicants to invest approximately $1 million and create at least 10 jobs, but Lutnick has criticized it as being “poorly overseen” and posing a risk of fraud.
“So the EB-5 program, which has been around for many years, has invested millions of dollars into projects in America, and those projects were often suspect,” Lutnick said during the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday. “They didn’t really work out. There wasn’t any oversight of it.”
Lutnick shared that those who gain access to the “gold card” will be vetted.
“These are going to be great global citizens who are going to bring entrepreneurial spirit, capacity, and growth to America,” Lutnick said. “If one of them comes in, think of the jobs they’re going to bring with them, the businesses they’re going to bring with them, and they’re going to pay American taxes as well, so this is huge money for America.”
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT TRUMP’S GOLD CARD PROGRAM
By implementing the “gold card”, Trump said he is seeking to attract the best talent who may not generate jobs.
“I get calls from, as an example, companies where they want to hire the No. 1 student at a school,” the president said. “Person comes from India, China, Japan, lots of different places, and they go to Harvard, the Wharton School of Finance, they go to Yale, and they make job offers, but the offer is immediately rescinded because you have no idea whether or not that person can stay in the country. I want to be able to have that person stay in the country. These companies can go and buy a gold card, and they can use it as a matter of recruitment.”