Green cards, gold cards, red cards
Trump proposes a $5 million “gold card” as an alternative green card for permanent residency and route to U.S. citizenship.
Issue #89
Hi all —
As someone who likes to hack credit card rewards, when I first heard “gold card” I assumed there was some new update to American Express’ iconic gold card.
This week, the gold card in conversation has been a new visa the Trump administration is proposing that would replace the EB-5 visa. Here’s a summary to decipher what we know so far.
What is the gold card visa?
President Donald Trump said this week that his administration proposes to sell a “gold card” visa with a price of $5 million to non-Americans. It’s being billed as an alternative green card for permanent residency and route to U.S. citizenship.
Trump claims it will bring wealthy individuals that could create jobs in the U.S. Additionally, companies will be able to buy a gold card for university students or other workers they want to recruit, too.
Trump wants to use the revenues from this new program toward reducing the national debt, which during his administration’s first term grew by at least $7.8 trillion.
Other countries — like Portugal, Italy and Greece — currently issue something similar to foreigners (including Americans), often called a “golden visa.” New Zealand, Singapore and Hong Kong also have similar residence-by-investment programs.
Why will the gold card replace the EB-5 visa?
The EB-5 visa currently has a similar benefit for a pathway to citizenship but requires around $1 million of investment in U.S. businesses and creating at least 10 full-time jobs.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick claims the EB-5 program is “full of nonsense, make-believe, fraud.” The New York Times reports that some lawmakers claim EB-5 has been a risk to national security and fraud. Lutnick said gold card applicants will be vetted with the hope they’ll invest in America.
When asked by a reporter this week, Trump said it’s possible Russian oligarchs would be eligible for gold cards.
What’s all the chatter about red cards?
You’ve heard about green cards, and now gold. But what about red?
Red cards have reportedly been around for almost two decades. They contain tips and legal rights immigrants have if they are targeted by federal agents, according to The New York Times.
The Times reports that orders for red cards are dramatically up under Trump. In San Francisco, for example, one immigrant resource center got orders for 9 million cards, more than the previous 17 years combined.
There is still so much more to learn as the gold card proposal is fleshed out and other changes to green cards and H-1B visas are announced. I’ll be keeping an eye on these and other immigration developments and how they might impact South Asian Americans.
Thanks for joining the conversation,
Vignesh
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Links across the internet to check out
NBC News reports on Stop AAPI Hate’s new data that shows January 2025 clocked the highest number of anti-Asian slurs online since tracking began in 2022. The surge was mostly from anti-South Asian slurs.
Reasons to be Cheerful reports on growing efforts to share, recycle and reuse wedding clothes and decor for Indian weddings.
The Los Angeles Times explores writer Mayukh Sen’s new book about actress Merle Oberon, known as Hollywood’s first South Asian star, who had kept her race a secret.
NBC News reports on how hundreds of Sikh worshippers are scared to or just not going to their gurdwaras in the U.S. regularly anymore, as the Trump administration is trying to allow immigration enforcement inside houses of worship (a federal judge has temporarily blocked that ability).
BBC News reports on Vivek Ramaswamy’s announcement that he’s running for governor of Ohio in 2026. Mother Jones notes that Ramaswamy is calling for similar government cost-cutting in Ohio as Trump is doing at the federal level.
In case you missed it
This month, actress and producer Mindy Kaling (born Vera Mindy Chokalingam) became the first South Asian American woman to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Kaling, 45, was only 24 when she joined the writing staff on NBC’s hit show “The Office.” She later went on to create and star in “The Mindy Project.” In recent years, Kaling’s production company has been behind several popular projects, including “Never Have I Ever” (Netflix) and “The Sex Lives of College Girls” (HBO Max) — both of which have Brown female leads.
Forward this
Social media influencer Sagar Parekh recently shared a satirical take on the common Brown girl and Brown guy speeches often heard at South Asian American weddings:
From the RWB archive
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