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Trump Gold Card update: How many visas have been sold yet? How much do they cost? Latest numbers in
Trump Gold Card visa programme off to a staggering start as it generates $1.3 billion in sales President Trump announced
President Donald Trump has announced that the new “Trump Gold Card” visa programme has generated about $1.3 billion in sales just days after its official launch.
The initiative, officially launched in early December 2025, allows wealthy foreign nationals to obtain expedited U.S. residency in exchange for a large financial contribution and processing fees.
Applicants must first pay a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee to the Department of Homeland Security, go through security vetting, and then make a $1 million contribution as a “gift” on the portal.
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Early revenue figures and sales surge
Trump Gold Card has sold $1.3 billion worth of visas in just a few days, with applicants paying the seven-figure price tag to secure fast-tracked approval.
The exact figures, however, have not been officially verified by any agency or posted on the White House.
According to Henley & Partners, there are more than 100 residence and citizenship-by-investment programmes worldwide offered by countries such as those in Europe and the Caribbean, where investors can make contributions or investments in return for residency or citizenship and have drawn billions of dollars in foreign investment over the years.
These visa programs are similar to the Trump Gold Card visa. However, this gold card is not a brand-new federal visa category but rather a modified use of existing employment-based immigrant categories (EB-1 and EB-2) where substantial financial contributions serve as supporting evidence for eligibility.
If the reported $1.3 billion in early Gold Card sales holds, the revenue would be comparable to what other nations attract through their long-established investment migration programmes.
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How much do the cards cost?
The base cost for an individual Gold Card is structured in a way where applicants must first pay a non-refundable $15,000 processing fee to the Department of Homeland Security, go through security vetting, and then make a $1 million contribution as a “gift” on the portal.
The Corporate Gold Card that seeks residency options for corporate employees requires a $2 million contribution per individual after the same processing fee. Family members included in the application must pay separate processing and contribution fees.
Fast-track residency, not permanent legislative change
The Gold Card does not formally amend immigration law. Instead, an executive order directs federal agencies to treat the contributions as evidence of eligibility under existing EB-1 and EB-2 visa categories, allowing the programme to operate within current statutory frameworks.
Only Congress can create new visas or categories for the fast-track residency plan to have a separate legal footing without being challenged in the courts.
