IN THIS GUIDE · A consultant urging a switch away from a filing already under way
Start with the GOLD CARD eligibility and application overview
What the program is described as, in its own terms
The official program material currently describes a nonrefundable $15,000 DHS processing fee for an individual and, after successful vetting, a $1 million gift to the United States; a corporate sponsor pays the fee per employee and makes a $2 million gift per employee. DHS determines whether an approved applicant receives lawful permanent resident status through EB-1 or EB-2, subject to eligibility for permanent residence, admissibility and visa availability. The gift is treated as evidence relevant to the specified EB-1 or EB-2 basis; it is not an EB-5 investment. The current official page must be checked again before money moves. Ask who receives the money, what written authority supports that recipient, and what document confirms the payment. A request to send funds to a consultant, broker, or company is not equivalent to a payment to the U.S. government. The recipient question is therefore a threshold check, not paperwork for later.
The underlying category does not disappear
The described route uses EB-1 or EB-2, but the gift is not legally irrelevant to that determination: the governing executive order directs the agencies to treat it as evidence of the specified EB-1 or EB-2 eligibility basis. An applicant must still be eligible for lawful permanent residence, admissible to the United States, and have a visa available. For Aurélie, the sensible comparison is what her existing petition is based on, how far it has progressed, and what would be lost by withdrawing it. That question is for the attorney conducting the filing. Keep the Gold Card discussion separate from EB-5. EB-5 concerns capital at commercial risk and a job-creation framework, while the described Gold Card model concerns a gift payment. Calling both an investment can lead an applicant to expect protections or returns that are not described.
A gift is not an investment and is not refundable in the way capital is
The distinction between a gift and an investment is not a technicality. Invested capital in an investment-based route is placed at risk in an enterprise, may generate a return, and is the subject of specific rules about commitment and sustainment. A gift to the U.S. government is a transfer for which no business return is contemplated, and a processing fee is described as separate again. Nothing about the program should be described, by anyone, as an investment that comes back. Before any money moves, the current terms — including what is refundable, if anything, and under what circumstances — should be read from the official source. A current official page and dated copy of any FAQ are useful because program descriptions can change. Compare the date, eligibility language, payment instructions, and derivative provisions before cancelling any existing immigration process. A salesperson’s summary is not the controlling record.
Verify with the official source, then decide with counsel
Program terms of this kind can change, and material a consultant is circulating may be out of date or simply wrong. The reliable sequence is to read the official program site directly, print or save what it says on the day you read it, and take that to a licensed attorney together with the papers for any filing already in progress. A decision to withdraw an existing petition has consequences of its own, including on the timing of anything filed afterwards, and it should never be made on the strength of a sales conversation. The decision should include whether another route already has a viable factual foundation. An applicant may have an employment, family, or investment case that requires different evidence and timing. Paying for one option does not repair missing facts in another.
Sources reviewed 2026-09-07. This guide covers a preparation focus; it is not an individual eligibility assessment.