IN THIS GUIDE · Calculate the programme using named people rather than a group sponsorship total
Start with the GOLD CARD eligibility and application overview
Identify each principal’s actual structure
The stated processing fee is US$15,000 nonrefundable per person. After successful vetting and official instructions, the gift is US$1 million for an individual principal or US$2 million per corporate-sponsored employee principal. A company funding several people should not describe the corporate gift as one amount covering any number of employees.
Distinguish joining relatives from additional principals
Each eligible joining spouse or unmarried child under 21 separately adds US$15,000 processing and a US$1 million gift, including corporate cases. Initial family inclusion is recommended. Identify the genuine relationship and role of each named applicant rather than assuming everyone in a group is a free dependent or a separate principal.
Keep corporate ongoing and replacement terms explicit
Corporate terms include 1% annual maintenance and a 5% transfer charge with a new background check. Gift reuse is conditional and does not automatically approve a replacement employee. A pooled benefits budget cannot transfer one person’s approval to another without the applicable conditions.
Preserve individual government review
The government determines the applicable EB-1 or EB-2 classification, with eligibility, admissibility and visa availability required. No approval, citizenship or timetable is guaranteed. The gift is not EB-5 capital or a promised commercial return, and other official visa, medical or case charges may apply. One person’s result does not establish the outcome for every person funded by the same payer.
Identify the recipient and legal purpose of each payment
If an applicant researches the programme, retain the date-stamped official page, FAQ, correspondence from an authorized government channel, payment confirmation if one is made, and records showing the lawful origin of any funds. Anything read here, or in any brochure, should be checked against the official government programme page and its frequently asked questions immediately before a payment is authorised, and a dated copy of that page should be kept with the file. Under the official framework and Executive Order 14351, the qualifying gift is treated as evidence relevant to the specified EB-1 or EB-2 basis; the applicant must still be eligible for lawful permanent residence, admissible and have a visa available. A separate private investment or service contract must be identified as separate; its promotional language does not change the government payment’s purpose. The opening assessment should identify the exact official program page, the current application mechanism, the payment recipient, and the immigration category being considered. The program's published terms have changed as it has been implemented, so the operative requirement is procedural as well as legal: obtain the current official terms, record the date and the source, and confirm them again immediately before any payment is made. The practical decision is whether a government source actually directs the next step or merely describes a prospective framework; if the direction is absent, pause rather than fill the gap with an intermediary's interpretation.
Re-verify the official terms immediately before any money moves
The official program page sets out how applications and payments are made; verify it on the day of payment, because terms, amounts and procedures should be re-verified before any money moves. The payment the official process describes is made by the applicant to the U.S. government, and it is none of those three; it buys no interest, no property and no claim, and nothing in it is given to the applicant by the government. Confirm the instruction, payor and route before sending money; a payment cannot cure an unmet EB-1 or EB-2 condition. The nonrefundable processing payment, instructed gift, and any private services invoice have different purposes and should not be merged in a single description. If an adviser proposes to hold funds and pay on the applicant's behalf, ask how the payment will be made, what confirmation the applicant will receive directly, and what happens to the money if the instruction never comes.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-08. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.