Key takeaways

• Trump’s Gold Card visa sells a fast track to U.S. residency for a $1 million payment plus a $15,000 fee.
• The program gives rights similar to a Green Card and aims to replace older investor visas like EB-5.
• Companies can sponsor foreign employees for Gold Cards by paying $2 million per worker.
• Experts warn of legal and fairness concerns, saying the scheme could be overturned or changed in court.
• Only very wealthy members of the Nepali diaspora are likely to qualify, and they face significant legal and financial risks.

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President Donald Trump has launched the Trump Gold Card visa, a new immigration program that lets foreigners buy a fast-tracked path to U.S. residency for a $1 million payment to the U.S. government, on top of a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee.

According to the White House fact sheet and officials at the Commerce Department, applicants first apply online, undergo security and background checks, then make a $1 million “contribution” to receive the Gold Card, which gives rights similar to a U.S. Green Card and a route to citizenship after several years. Corporations can sponsor foreign staff for the same status by paying $2 million per employee.

The Trump Gold Card is designed to replace or sideline older investor programs such as the EB-5 visa, which previously required investments of around $800,000 to $1.05 million tied to job creation in the United States. Unlike EB-5, the Gold Card does not clearly require applicants to create U.S. jobs and, for now, has no strict cap on the number of cards that can be issued each year.

Officials say the scheme will focus on “high-value” applicants such as entrepreneurs and top graduates from U.S. universities and claim it could raise billions of dollars to help reduce U.S. government debt. A more expensive “Platinum Card,” at around $5 million with extra tax benefits, has been floated but would likely need approval from Congress.

Immigration lawyers and policy experts have warned that the Gold Card could face serious legal challenges because it was created mainly by executive order, not by an act of Congress. They say wealthy applicants risk losing their money if courts later rule that parts of the program are unlawful or if a future administration cancels it.

Critics argue that the Gold Card turns U.S. immigration into a “two-tier” system where rich investors can buy a fast route to citizenship while refugees, students and working-class migrants face tougher rules and mass deportations. Supporters respond that many countries, including the UK, Canada and several EU states, already run similar “golden visa” schemes aimed at high-net-worth individuals.

For the Nepali and wider South Asian diaspora, the Trump Gold Card may look attractive to a very small group of ultra-wealthy business families or NRNs who want a permanent base in the United States and can afford the multi-million-dollar cost. But for most Nepalese students, workers and families, the price, the lack of job-creation benefits, and the legal uncertainty around the program mean that traditional paths such as study, work, family reunion or employment-based visas will remain the only realistic routes. Lawyers advise anyone considering the Gold Card to seek independent legal and financial advice before paying any fees.