DC Edit | $5m ticket for American Dream

US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the Gold Card scheme, which offers permanent resident status to foreigners investing at least $5 million (nearly Rs 50 crores), is one of his several attempts to capitalise on America’s economic and brand power. The investment-for-citizenship status is not a new concept in the world. The US already had a similar programme, the EB-5 visa, since 1990, which granted Green Cards to foreigners who invested $1 million in businesses that could create at least 10 jobs. The new Gold Card scheme merely increases the amount that foreigners are required to invest in the US from $1 million to $5 million.

Trump expects to reduce the United States’ $36-trillion debt by selling Gold Cards. According to him, the US could generate $5 trillion if one million foreigners buy Gold Cards.

According to an estimate, 23,000 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) have forsaken Indian passports to obtain foreign citizenship over the past 10 years. This places India second among the countries that have witnessed wealthy individuals migrating abroad, after China.

By the end of 2024, there were 58 million dollar-millionaires in the world. Of these, the US alone accounts for nearly one-third (21 million) of the super-rich population. The Western bloc, comprising the US, its European allies, Australia and Japan, has 44 million super-rich individuals, or three-fourths of the global super-rich. The remaining 14 million dollar-millionaires reside in other countries. This makes Trump’s plan to attract a significant number of the super-rich a distant proposition, especially after the required investment was increased fivefold.

The image of the US as a melting pot and a liberal country that welcomes foreigners has suffered a dent, and reports of racial attacks have increased in recent times. In this scenario, the super-rich, who leave their countries in search of peace and stability, are unlikely to bet on Trumpland, where xenophobia is at its peak.