US President Donald Trump launched a ‘Gold Card’ visa in December 2025 — promising to grant applicants “US residency in record time”. The card can be used to “unlock life in America” in lieu of $1 million and a $15,000 processing fee. The controversial new pathway to residency came even as the Trump administration came down heavily against Immigration policies and updated many existing visa pathways. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick however revealed on Thursday that only one person had received a Trump gold card till date.
The top Trump aide told a Congressional Committee on Thursday that only one person had been granted a gold card visa since it was launched last year. Lutnick didn’t reveal the identity of the applicant who had been approved — but added that there were countless others waiting for the document.
“They have approved recently one person and there are hundreds in the queue going through the process…They’ve just set it up, and they wanted to make sure they did it perfectly,” Lutnick said during a congressional committee hearing Thursday.
Lutnick had previously dubbed the visa program “the green card on steroids” soon after it was launched in December. He said at the time that the US government had sold gold cards “worth” $1.3 billion in a matter of days. Lutnick had also told a cabinet meeting that the gold card would raise $1 trillion in revenue and help “balance the budget.”
What is a gold card visa?
The “Trump Gold Card” visa program allows applicants to fast-track their way to a residency permit by making a million-dollar “contribution” to the US government. Those looking to live and work in the United States under this program have to first pay the Department of Homeland Security a a $15,000 fee for speedy processing and undergo a background check or vetting process. Details outlined on the glitzy gold card government website add that “additional small fees to the US Department of State may apply depending on the applicant”.
“For a $15,000 DHS processing fee and, after background approval, a contribution of $1 million, receive US residency in record time with the Trump Gold Card…As appropriately determined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and subject to availability, a successful applicant receives lawful permanent resident status as an EB-1 or EB-2 visa holder,” reads excerpts from the website.
How many people have enrolled for a gold card visa?
According to details shared by Lutnick on Thursday, there are hundreds of people currently going through the application process. He had told Reuters in December that some 10,000 people had signed up for the Gold Card during a pre-registration period and that he expected many more to do so.
“I would expect over time that we’d sell, you know, thousands of these cards and raise, you know, billions, billions of dollars,” he added at the time.