US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick hailed the Trump administration’s sweeping changes to visa programmes, claiming the reforms will prevent foreign workers from “taking jobs from hard-working Americans” while ensuring that only those who bring significant benefits to the US economy are admitted.
His remarks came hours after President Donald Trump signed an executive order launching the ‘Gold Card’ visa programme, priced at USD 1 million for individual applicants and USD 2 million for businesses, alongside a proclamation imposing an annual fee of USD 100,000 on H-1B visa applications.
Taking to X, Lutnick criticised what he described as the “open-border Democrats’ disastrous agenda” of the last four years, accusing them of allowing illegal immigration that harmed American workers. He said the new programmes would “restore the immigration system to its intended purpose — significantly benefitting America.”
President Trump, while signing the order, said the Gold Card initiative would fast-track residency and citizenship for wealthy foreigners and was expected to generate billions in revenue. “It’s going to raise billions of dollars, which will reduce taxes, pay off debt, and do other good things,” he remarked.
Lutnick stressed that the US would now prioritise admitting “extraordinary people at the very top” capable of building businesses and creating jobs, rather than lower-wage workers. He criticised the existing employment-based green card system as “illogical,” pointing out that many admitted workers earned as little as USD 66,000 annually.
In addition to the Gold Card programme, Trump’s proclamation imposed a USD 100,000 fee on H-1B visas, payable by employers. The administration argues this measure will deter overuse of the visa category and ensure companies hire only “highly skilled” foreign workers when no American alternatives are available.
The H-1B visa, widely used by US companies to recruit foreign professionals in fields such as STEM and IT, has long been a lifeline for skilled workers from India and other countries. With the new fee structure, however, many fear that smaller firms and startups may struggle to afford the high costs, potentially reshaping America’s tech hiring landscape.