Howard Lutnick Says Nearly 70,000 Register For $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa As US Eyes $1 Trillion Windfall From Premium Immigration Plan

Nearly 70,000 people have registered interest in President Donald Trump‘s new $5 million “Trump Card” visa program, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced Monday. The waiting list reached 68,703 applicants within hours of Lutnick’s morning update showing 67,697 registrations.

What Happened: The Trump administration launched TrumpCard.gov last week, allowing foreign nationals to register for the premium residency program. The website features a gold card design displaying Trump’s face, signature, an eagle, the Statue of Liberty, and the American flag.

“The card will be made of gold. It will be beautiful,” Lutnick told the Financial Times. He emphasized Trump’s attention to aesthetic details, noting the president “deeply cares about” how the investment vehicle looks and feels.

The program targets business leaders and companies seeking U.S. legal residency for executives or employees. One unnamed global technology CEO indicated plans to purchase over 100 cards if the scheme reaches “fruition,” viewing it as attracting “the world’s best and brightest” entrepreneurs, engineers, and scientists, according to the report.

Lutnick plans to replace the existing EB-5 investor visa program, which granted approximately 14,000 visas last year with minimum investments up to $1.8 million. The Commerce Department expects to issue tens of thousands of Trump Cards this summer, with Lutnick projecting that 200,000 visas could generate $1 trillion in Treasury revenue.

See Also: Trump, UK’s Keir Starmer Strike G7 Trade Deal: Aerospace Tariffs Slashed, Auto Quotas Set—Steel, Aluminum Still In Limbo

Why It Matters: Billionaire Trump donor John Paulson originally proposed the concept as a debt reduction mechanism for America’s $36 trillion burden.

The program represents a significant shift targeting high-net-worth individuals. Immigrant entrepreneurs comprise 22.6% of all U.S. entrepreneurs and founded 46% of Fortune 500 companies.

Billionaire Mark Cuban previously supported the concept if corporations buy cards for high-earning employees, while Elon Musk was involved in developing the application software.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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