President Trump announced the launch of the Trump Gold Card immigration initiative on December 10, 2025, activating a new web page for Form I-140G, the Immigrant Petition for the Gold Card Program.
Under this initiative, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is to expeditiously adjudicate applicants who donate at least $1 million to the U.S. Department of Commerce as eligible under the existing statutory visa classifications for (i) an "alien of extraordinary ability" or (ii) an alien of exceptional ability whose proposed U.S. employment is in the "national interest."
The current initiative includes two different card options. The Individual Trump Gold Card requires a gift of $1,000,000 per person (even any accompanying spouse or children), and the Trump Corporate Gold Card requires a gift of $2,000,000 for an employee to qualify and an additional $1,000,000 per person for any accompanying spouse or children. The Trump Platinum Card, which the Administration says will be launched soon, is stated to require a $5,000,000 contribution and offers the foreign national the ability to reside in the U.S. up to 270 days without being subject to U.S. taxes on non-U.S. income.
Eligible applicants, or Employers, are required to submit, along with Form I-140G, a $15,000 non-refundable processing and vetting fee (akin to the USCIS filing fee) per applicant included in the form, with an additional notation that additional small fees to the U.S. Department of State may apply depending on the applicant.
The I-140G form collects data related to the individual or employer filing on behalf of the principal applicant and family members and their biographical data, employment history, and academic history. Donors should expect extremely thorough government scrutiny of their sources of funds, which should be heavily documented.
A successful applicant would obtain U.S. Permanent Residency (green card). After maintaining U.S. permanent residence for five years, the person may be eligible for naturalization to U.S. citizenship according to normal rules.
While the adjudication of eligibility as someone of "extraordinary ability" or in the "national interest" may be expeditious, it does not appear that USCIS can put Gold Card applicants ahead of existing approved foreign nationals in the worldwide or country-specific queues for limited annual allotments of permanent visas in those categories. Prospective donors or employees from China and India should be particularly concerned about this.
Litigation is expected to challenge the legality of the program's use of categories that were not meant for big donors, and the program's risk must be considered by potential donors.
Please contact one of our Baker Donelson immigration attorneys to arrange a consultation to evaluate if the Trump Gold Card or another less expensive immigration process is a sensible option for oneself or a key employee.
Robin L. Mulack, a paralegal at Baker Donelson, contributed to this article.