Looking For A Faster Route To US Citizenship? Trump Proposes A $5 Million ‘Gold Card’ To Let The Rich Buy Their Way In

US President Donald Trump has announced a proposal to simplify the citizenship process for wealthy immigrants by introducing a "gold card" system.

Under this plan, individuals could obtain a "gold card" by paying $5 million, which would provide them with green-card residency status and a pathway to citizenship.

He projected that the sale of these cards could reach one million, suggesting that the proceeds could help in lowering the US national debt.

Trump stated that this initiative would replace the EB-5 immigrant investor visa program, which allows foreign investors to secure green cards by investing in businesses that generate or sustain employment in the US.

Through the EB-5 program, foreign nationals can acquire a green card by promising to invest in US businesses.

"We are going to be selling a gold card...We are going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million," Trump said, NDTV reported.

"It's going to give you green card privileges plus it's going to be a route to (American) citizenship, and wealthy people would be coming into our country by buying this card," he added.

Trump said that additional details regarding the programme would be released within two weeks.

Responding to a journalist’s query about Russian eligibility, Trump said that Russian oligarchs might be able to participate in the programme.

"Yeah, possibly. Hey. I know some Russian oligarchs that are very nice people," he said.

Established by Congress in 1990, the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme is managed by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with the goal of fostering economic growth through foreign investment and job creation, as per the USCIS website.

"The EB-5 program ... it was full of nonsense, make-believe and fraud, and it was a way to get a green card that was low price. 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," Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters on Tuesday.

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